Jewish Writers Institute

Fellows /

Natacha Ruck

Digital Storytellers Lab

2024 Fellow

Natacha Ruck

MICHÈLE 1941

If my mother was a teenager now, she’d be an influencer. She was born to Jewish refugees during WW2 in occupied France and she longed to move to Israel. But by the time she was 18, she had to decide between following her dream or use her fashion sense to save her family from bankruptcy. My project is to use archival photos and interviews to recreate her immigrant survivor narrative, on IG, Youtube and Tiktok.

Natacha is a multi-lingual storyteller, media producer and educator. She strives to use narrative to deepen our understanding of the world and foster a sense of community. Her documentary work has appeared at the MoMA, the Jewish Museum New York, and on NPR. She's served as the Managing Editor of the Duolingo French podcast, and Senior Producer of the Stanford Storytelling Project. Natacha teaches at the University of San Francisco and explores how we define our identities on stage as the writer/performer of two solo shows: "You're good for nothing... I'll milk the cow myself" and "Confessions of a French Interpreter."