The Leo Baeck Institute London would like to invite you to another free online screening from the LBI Film Club, starting on Thursday 25 June 2026. We hope all the film lovers among you will continue to enjoy our selection of thought-provoking films exploring the rich, diverse and multi-faceted Jewish experience.
Step into the extraordinary and long-overshadowed story of Fanny Mendelssohn (1805–1847), a brilliant German-Jewish composer and pianist whose musical genius was overshadowed and sidelined by the rigid patriarchal structures of 19th-century Europe and the protective boundaries of her own family.
Through rigorous historical research and with stunning musical performances, the film, directed by the Fanny’s great great great granddaughter Sheila Hayman, uncovers Fanny’s true authorship of the Easter Sonata, a lost piano masterpiece that had been misattributed to her famous younger brother, Felix Mendelssohn, for over a century.
The documentary traces Fanny’s life from her childhood in a highly cultured German-Jewish household in Berlin to her quiet perseverance as a composer of over 450 works. It explores the deep but complex sibling relationship between Fanny and Felix, revealing how social conventions forced her to publish some of her finest Lieder under her brother’s name. Guided by virtuoso pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason, who brings the Easter Sonata vibrantly to life, the film weaves poignant parallels between Fanny’s historic struggles and the challenges faced by women and pioneers in the classical music industry today.
More than a music biography, Fanny: The Other Mendelssohn invites viewers to reflect on the historical erasure of women in the arts, the complexities of cultural assimilation, and the enduring resilience of creative genius. It offers a joyous, engaging, and timely look at a composer who is finally reclaiming her rightful place in musical history.
Directed by: Sheila Hayman
Produced by: Sheila Hayman (Mercury Studios Media Ltd / Dartmouth Films)
Screenplay by: Sheila Hayman
Featuring: Isata Kanneh-Mason, Sheku Kanneh-Mason, Chi-Chi Nwanoku, Anna Beer, and Dr. Angela R. Mace
Editing by: Evelyn Franks
Camera by: Hannah Engelson, Lynda Hall, Benedict Mirow, and Beatrice Ní Bhroin
Documentary | 96 minutes | English | United Kingdom, 2023
The film will be available to view free of charge for one week, from 25 June to 2 July 2026
We wish to thank Sheila Hayman for her support in making this screening possible.
Further LBI Film Club screenings will be announced via our website and social media channels.
Enjoy the film!
