Nelly Toll was only eight years old when she and her mother went into hiding from Nazis occupying Lwow, Poland, in 1943. For nearly two years, she hid in a small, bare room with her mother.  Intolerable boredom and ever-present fear were the catalysts to her silent play, love of literature, and art making.

Armed with only a set of watercolors and small pieces of paper, she painted life as it would be in a normal childhood, filled with beauty, colors, life, space, family and mostly freedom. But in Nelly’s case these were merely fantasies. 

Nelly and her mother survived and eventually escaped to America.  She became a wife, a mother, a grandmother and an inspirational teacher, earning Masters degrees in art, art history and education as well as a Doctorate in counseling and art therapy.  Nelly continues to reach children impacted by life’s most painful experiences – illness, violence, bullying, grief, depression, loneliness, fear – and offers them an alternative tool to reaffirm their lives.

Your tax-deductible donation will help us create this exclusive one-hour documentary. In the film the viewer will travel with Nelly through her two worlds, as she leaps into her bright future, escaping her present living hell. Vérité cinematography and rare archival footage will be combined with visually stunning 2D & 3D animation of Nelly’s watercolor paintings.  Virtual reality recreations will amplify the telling of Nelly’s time in hiding and her inspirational career as a teacher, counselor and art therapist after the War.

Her award-winning memoir – BEHIND THE SECRET WINDOW will guide our storytelling, along with the sixty watercolors of her imaginary world that fortunately still survive. Nelly’s wonderful paintings have been displayed around the world. Eight are in the permanent collection of the Yad Vashem Museum in Israel. Twelve others were auctioned to private collectors by Sotheby’s in New York. “They are part of history,” says Marsha Malinowski of Sotheby’s. “They tell an extraordinary story, how this child survived all of this.”

IMAGINING A BETTER WORLD, The Nelly Toll Story, is a testament to the human power of survival, a story of love between a mother and her child and a testament to the saving powers of the imagination. Through art, a better world can emerge.

Albert Einstein once said that "Imagination is more important than knowledge.  Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world." It is the preview of life’s coming attractions.

We are all born with the gift of imagination and its creative process to change our reality.  The ability to imagine a better world, under the most threatening of circumstances, is a human gift that can inspire hope and courage.

Every time we turn on the news, we’re reminded of the many things that separate us; adversity, ethnicity, violence and bullying are universal concerns that impacted Nelly Toll and, of course, affect us all today. I believe Nelly’s story can inform the choices that individuals and communities make to overcome these many issues.
Storytelling has the power to connect us through our humanity and together, we can IMAGINE a better world for All.

We are thrilled to accept any of the following in lieu of a cash donation:

•  MILEAGE TO FLY NELLY TO POLAND

•  POST PRODUCTION SERVICES
  

• CATERING

• PHOTOGRAPHIC SERVICES
  

If you want to help but can't donate right now, you can use the links @the bottom to share our campaign with people who may be interested or contact us about local screenings in your area.  Remember to follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook and let your friends know using the hashtag #nellytollstory #imagine