Based on Dr. Edith Eger’s New York Times bestselling memoir, the documentary weaves together three generations of women marked by war and captivity — including an Israeli mother whose son was killed after being taken hostage.
NEW YORK, NY / LOS ANGELES, CA, UNITED STATES, October 23, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — AB2 Media Group and the filmmakers of THE CHOICE have revealed that their theatrical division, ABRAMORAMA, secured the North American distribution rights for the documentary. Directed by John David Coles and produced alongside Jason Orans, Pamela Ryan and Tamar Yoffe, the film is slated for a January 15 opening at the Quad in New York City, with a broader expansion across North American theaters to follow. The project took home the Brizzolara Family Foundation Award for Films of Conflict & Resolution at the 2026 Hamptons International Film Festival and is currently in contention for an Academy Award for Best Feature Documentary.
For the non-theatrical rollout, Abramorama is teaming up with Theorem Media, Talking Wall Pictures, and Gigantic Pictures. On November 19 at 7pm ET, Theorem will present a one-night-only Global Virtual Watch Event on Kinema, featuring a live discussion with director John Coles, Dr. Eger’s daughter and clinical psychologist Dr. Marianne Engle, and a yet-to-be-announced special guest. Theorem is also handling the film’s organic social media strategy and collaborating with the Edith Eger Foundation to connect with Dr. Eger’s global audience. Groups interested in hosting their own screenings can book in advance, and updates are available on Instagram at @thechoicedocumentary.
“Dr. Edith Eger taught millions of readers through her book that even in the face of unthinkable suffering, we keep the freedom to decide who we become,” said AB2 Media Group & Abramorama CEO Karol Martesko-Fenster, John David Coles has carried that message into the present with extraordinary grace and urgency. At a time when so many people are carrying grief, this film offers a way forward.”
Produced by Talking Wall and Gigantic Pictures, The Choice brings together the stories of three women from different eras, each profoundly shaped by conflict, imprisonment, and loss: the late Dr. Edith “Edie” Eger, a celebrated psychologist, Holocaust survivor, and author of the bestselling memoir The Choice: Embrace the Possible; Iris Haim, an Israeli mother whose son Yotam was abducted during the October 7 attacks; and Sapir Cohen, who endured 55 days as a hostage in Gaza.
“I set out to make a film about Edie Eger’s legacy and discovered that her legacy was still being written,” said director/producer John David Coles. “Trauma can echo across generations, but so can resilience, and so can hope. My wish is that audiences leave the theater knowing that even when the worst has already happened, we still have a say in how we carry it.”
At the heart of Eger’s philosophy is the belief that although we cannot alter our past, we retain the power to shape our present. After surviving Auschwitz, she dedicated her career to assisting Vietnam veterans and others in confronting trauma, guilt, and grief without being shackled by history.
Watch and share the official theatrical trailer for THE CHOICE HERE.
Within the film, Eger’s principles become a source of strength for Haim as she anxiously awaits word about her son, Yotam, who had been taken by Hamas. Yotam managed to escape but was tragically killed, along with two other hostages, by Israeli soldiers who misidentified them as threats. Confronted with devastating loss, Iris turns to Eger’s insights, deciding that bitterness and despair will not dictate her future.
Cohen discovers a parallel lesson during her own ordeal. Though she had never encountered Eger’s writings, she finds purpose in small gestures of kindness. By aiding others, she comes to understand that even when her physical liberty is stripped away, her capacity to define herself remains intact.
Blending archival footage, intimate interviews, public speeches, audio recordings, and personal letters, The Choice shifts between past and present to illustrate how trauma can pass through generations—and how healing can follow the same path. The film, at once moving and heartbreaking, poses a fundamental question: What do we control when everything else is lost? Through Eger’s life and the intersecting journeys of these women, the answer lies in the brave act of confronting profound pain without letting it consume us, and in deciding how we live from this moment forward.
THE CHOICE (United States, 84 minutes – English 4K DCP with 5.1 Stereo Audio). Abramorama presents a Talking Wall/Gigantic Pictures Production. “The Choice” Executive Producers Veronica Leff, Miguel Leff, Rick Itzkowich, Marianne Engle, Rob Engle, Laurie M. Tisch, Cliff Chenfeld, Eduardo and Lily Margolis. Special Narration by Tovah Feldshuh. Director of Photography Petr Cikhart. Original Music by Ofer Shabi and Yaniv Fridel. Edited by Ayelet Gil Efrat. Produced by John David Coles, Jason Orans, Pamela Ryan and Tamar Yoffe. Directed by John David Coles. An Abramorama North American Theatrical Release. For more information, please visit thechoicedocumentary.com.
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About Talking Wall Pictures
Talking Wall Pictures is an independent production company focused on developing and producing high-end scripted and unscripted content.
Founded by award-winning director and producer John David Coles, the company crafts stories that delve into the complexities of human experience with depth, nuance, and creativity. With strong ties to New York’s theater and literary scenes, Talking Wall Pictures finds exceptional books, plays, and talent, transforming them into narratives that resonate with broad audiences.
The company keeps a deliberately curated slate, enabling it to invest passion and attention into each project. Its independent status allows it to nurture storytellers in an incubator-like environment where bold concepts and personal narratives can develop fully.
About Gigantic Pictures
Gigantic Pictures is an Emmy- and Independent Spirit Award-nominated production company founded by Brian Devine and Jason Orans, working across film, documentary, podcast, and television.
Its recent documentaries include Ramin Bahrani’s Oscar-shortlisted If Dreams Were Lightning, Nira Burstein’s Charm Circle, Matt Wechsler’s food documentary The Jungle, and the podcast Mafia Tapes. Feature credits span Crumb Catcher, Boaz Yakin’s Boarding School, the NAACP Image Award-winning Night Catches Us, starring Anthony Mackie and Kerry Washington, and Dare, featuring Emmy Rossum and Rooney Mara. Other productions include Ramin Bahrani’s Blood Kin, Goodbye Solo, and Plastic Bag, as well as the documentaries Frank Serpico, Night School, and The Great Invisible, directed by Margaret Brown
About Theorem Media
Theorem Media is a mission-driven non-profit working to reshape the independent film ecosystem. Through its proprietary Networked Release Engine, Theorem Media focuses on bringing audiences to films rather than the reverse. This demand is channeled into theatrical, virtual, on-demand, and community releases, in collaboration with rights holders and theatrical distributors. Theorem’s current slate includes Ivy Meeropol’s Ask E. Jean, nominated for this year’s Critics Choice Award, presented by Abramorama and Impact Partners; The Choice, directed by John Coles (House of Cards, Homeland); and Hail to the Breadsticks! directed by Donick Cary (The Simpsons, New Girl). Learn more at www.theoremmedia.org
About AB2 Media Group / ABRAMORAMA
AB2 Media Group (AB2) delivers strategic advisory and rights management services to intellectual property holders, including filmmakers, major networks, record labels, digital platforms, and prominent artists. ABRAMORAMA, AB2’s theatrical releasing arm, is a leading global distribution and marketing partner for nonfiction, narrative, sports/adventure, science, and music films, recognized for its consistent quality.
Notable recent releases from AB2 Media Group’s theatrical division include Alex Gibney’s Knife: The Attempted Murder of Salman Rushdie, Rory Kennedy’s The Trial of Alec Baldwin, and Cindy Kleine and André Gregory’s One More Time.
ABRAMORAMA’s recent successes include Never Stop Chasing, a Dolby Vision/Dolby Atmos profile of storm chaser Reed Timmer that secured a nationwide AMC release during the summer blockbuster season; Ivy Meeropol’s Ask E. Jean, which held over at the IFC Center for five weeks; Billy Preston: That’s The Way God Planned It, which opened at Film Forum in February 2026 with the weekend’s top per-screen average; and the Robert Reich documentary The Last Class, the #5 highest-grossing documentary of 2025, which ran for 12 weeks at the Quad in NYC and sold out screenings nationwide. Earlier this year, the company partnered with Sobey Road Entertainment, National Geographic, and Disney+ for the theatrical release of Werner Herzog’s Ghost Elephants, which debuted with a coast-to-coast screening event and live Q&A simulcast to over 115 theaters before heading to Disney+ and Hulu. Other releases include 2DIE4, the company’s first IMAX exclusive, as well as Benjamin Flaherty’s Shuffle and Alexis Lloyd’s Group – both New York Times Critics’ Picks – and Steve Schapiro: Being Everywhere, a documentary on the legendary photojournalist executive produced by Michael Rosenberg, Sid Ganis, and Rob Friedman.
With more than 25 years in the business, Abramorama has distributed and marketed hundreds of films, including the record-breaking Hello, Love, Again directed by Cathy Garcia-Sampana and Oliver Stone’s Nuclear Now; Werner Herzog’s Ghost Elephants, Sam Green’s 32 Sounds, Vanessa & Ted Hope’s Invisible Nation; Ron Howard’s Grammy Award®-winning The Beatles: Eight Days A Week – The Touring Years; Stanley Nelson’s Miles Davis: Birth of The Cool; Atlantic Records and Melanie Martinez’ K-12; John McDermott’s Jimi Hendrix: Electric Church; Amir Bar-Lev’s Long Strange Trip – The Untold Story of the Grateful Dead; Corbett Redford and Green Day’s Turn It Around: The Story of East Bay Punk; Brett Bern’s BANG! The Bert Berns Story; Brett Morgen and National Geographic’s seminal Jane; Asif Kapadia’s Senna; Neil Young’s catalog of Bernard Shakey Productions; Cameron Crowe’s Pearl Jam Twenty; Sacha Gervasi’s Spirit Award-winning Anvil! The Story of Anvil; Banksy’s Academy Award® nominated & Spirit Award-winning Exit Through the Gift Shop; and the episodic theatrical series Deconstructing The Beatles.
In January 2019, AB2 launched ABCinemaNOW with a live multicast streaming event from Paris, France, reaching 55 countries for Roberta Grossman and Nancy Spielberg’s Who Will Write Our History. During the COVID-19 pandemic, AB2 released 24 feature films as live virtual cinema events across multiple digital platforms and premiered the first paid feature film globally on META in 2021. For more information, please visit www.AB2mediagroup.com.
Jane Curley
Falco Ink
+1 212-445-7100
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**Why it matters:** The film’s distribution brings a powerful, timely narrative to theaters, connecting a Holocaust survivor’s enduring wisdom with the ongoing trauma of October 7. It underscores the universal struggle to maintain agency and hope in the face of unimaginable loss, offering audiences a framework for processing grief and resilience.
