With an exceptional combination of chutzpah and charm, Garri Urban's life story is as incredible as it is real, featuring escape, adventure and triumph. Critically acclaimed on its release, the film was nominated for the BIFAs, Griersons, and won many international awards.

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Garri Urban was a survivor – not a victim – of both the Holocaust and Gulag. Born in the shtetl (the Jewish rural community) in 1916, he overcame adversity through a mixture of charm, aggression, and chutzpah. His 1980 autobiographical account of his adventures took its title from when he was shot during his attempt to swim across an icy river from Soviet territory to Romania. He told the snipers who stooped to lift his apparently lifeless body; “no, tovarisch (comrade), I’m not dead” before striking their officer.