''Under Jakob's Ladder'' is an independent drama film by CubeCity Entertainment. Based on a true story, it tells how a teacher named Jakob Seel is arrested and thrown into a Soviet prison in 1938. Mann Munoz directed the film and Roberto Munoz produced. Jeff Stewart plays the lead role of Jakob Seel. The film also stars Christopher Elliott, Sal Rendino, Quentin McCuiston, Sean Patrick Folster, Matthew R. Staley, Chloe Roe, and

Ken Jennings Kenneth Wayne Jennings III (born May 23, 1974) is an American game show host, author, and former game show contestant. He is the highest-earning American game show contestant, having won money on five different game shows, including $4,522,70 ...

. The film is set in the Soviet Union prior to

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. It features the lives of the ethnic minority

Germans from Russia The German minority population in Russia, Ukraine, and the Soviet Union stemmed from several sources and arrived in several waves. Since the second half of the 19th century, as a consequence of the Russification policies and compulsory military ...

Plot

Jakob Seel ( Jeff Stewart) struggles with his growing sense of worthlessness after he is dismissed from his position as a teacher in a Soviet village. A neighbor asks him to say a prayer at the funeral of her brother. He agrees, even though he knows it is illegal. Jakob is reported and he is arrested by the secret police later that night. They take him from his daughter and granddaughter, Marta (played by Chloe Roe). Thrown into prison, Jakob and his fellow political prisoners find themselves under the heel of the ruthless warden: Nikolai (played by Christopher Elliott). Unknown to them, Nikolai has an old vendetta against Jakob. One by one, during the night, prisoners mysteriously disappear. To help distract them from their terror of being taken, Jakob consents to the prisoners' request to form a choir. In doing so, he unexpectedly finds the sense of worth he had craved. As he rehearses the men, he gains their respect, especially that of the embittered prison bully, Bruno (Sal Rendino). Then one day, the man responsible for Jakob's arrest — Oigen (

) - is also imprisoned. Now, Jakob faces the test of a lifetime — to see if he's ready to forgive the unforgivable.

Cast

* Jeff Stewart as Jakob Seel * Christopher Elliott as Nikolai * Sal Rendino as Bruno * Quentin McCuiston as Yasha * Sean Patrick Folster as Yosif * Matthew R. Staley as Karl * Peter Iasillo, Jr. as Vovik * Chloe Roe as Marta * Alexandra Tejeda Rieloff as Emma *

as Oigen * Horacio F. Lazo as Pepchik * Greg Kowalczyk as Rudi

Based on a true story

''Under Jakob's Ladder'' was inspired by the life of a real teacher who lived in the Soviet Union in the 1930s: Jakob Seel. His life story is representative of so many others who lived during Stalinist great purges. He belonged to an ethnic minority called the

Germans in Russia The German minority population in Russia, Ukraine, and the Soviet Union stemmed from several sources and arrived in several waves. Since the second half of the 19th century, as a consequence of the Russification policies and compulsory militar ...

. During the 18th century, Seel's German-speaking ancestors were among those invited by

Catherine the Great , en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes , house = , father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst , mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp , birth_date = , birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anhal ...

(and her son

Paul Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chris ...

and grandson

Alexander Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

who ruled after her) to settle the Russian territories. Communist rule was established as a result of the 1917

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and ad ...

, and

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secreta ...

came to power in the late 1920s. In the 1930s, Stalin began his political purges. The

secret police Secret police (or political police) are intelligence, security or police agencies that engage in covert operations against a government's political, religious, or social opponents and dissidents. Secret police organizations are characteristic of a ...

would always come at night in a vehicle that was nicknamed the Black Raven. Men became scarce in the villages and it wasn't long before Seel himself was arrested—after praying a simple prayer at a funeral.

Awards

2010 Redemptive Film Festival *Redemptive Storyteller Award 2011

Manhattan Film Festival The Manhattan Film Festival (MFF) is an annual film festival. It was founded in 2006 by filmmakers Philip J. Nelson and Jose Ruiz Jr. MFF is currently operated by Mr. Nelson and Mr. Ruiz, along with a team of filmmakers, journalists, and exhibito ...

*Best Actor ( Jeff Stewart) *Best Period Piece

References

External links

* * {{IMDb title, 1518825, Under Jakob's Ladder 2011 films American drama films American films based on actual events 2010s English-language films Films directed by Mann Munoz 2010s American films