Thousands of Hours of Archival Footage Published

Photography and video were often encouraged by the Rebbe. Cameras were practically integral to the scene in 770, and occasionally, the Rebbe himself even funded them! Today, as we approach thirty years since Gimmel Tammuz, these recordings have become especially valuable.

For decades, JEM’s ongoing mission has been to collect, preserve, and publish media of the Rebbe. In addition to constantly creating masterfully produced content, in recent years, full-length footage of the Rebbe from JEM’s vast archive has steadily been made available on JEM.tv. 

The work was intensive, tireless and ongoing, with years of hard work and dedication to the cause. As this Gimmel Tammuz grew nearer, significant efforts were invested to bring this decades long project to the finish line, making this treasure trove available for all. Leading donors in the archive and restoration process were the Rohr and Federman families, and the publishing project was made possible by members of the JEM foundation. It began with the release of beautiful scenes from the festive month of Tishrei. After that came years’ worth of historic Lag Baomer parades, followed by a large amount of footage from major calendar events. 

Now, JEM is excited to announce a significant milestone: the complete publication of all major video collections of footage of the Rebbe. These full-length, archival videos total more than a thousand hours and include content that has never been seen before!

These major collections, now available in their entirety, feature the extensive footage recorded by Chaim Baruch Halberstam of WLCC, Eli Blachman, Sholom Ber Goldstein, Levi Freidin and JEM. JEM extends a heartfelt thank you to them for sharing their priceless collections for the benefit of the public!

This content is all accessible through the constantly updating JEM.tv interface. With exceptions for private conversations and the like, full-length, raw videos from these landmark collections are available for browsing, viewing and sharing. Archival videos on JEM.tv are accessible with a free account, while produced films can be viewed with a paid JEM membership.

Below are the collections now available in their entirety:

• The famed WLCC collection. Filmed by 770’s in-house photographer Chaim Baruch Halberstam and his team, this collection is made up of videos from the year 5747 (1987) and onward. While partial copies of these videos were sold by WLCC at the time they were filmed, more complete versions of these scenes have now been made available, in the original higher resolution. These full-length videos capture entire events at 770, such as Kos Shel Bracha and other distributions, Tefillos with the Rebbe, weekday Sichos, the final weekday Farbrengens, and everyday moments.

• Reb Eli Blachman’s films, from the year 5742 (1982) and onward, feature Farbrengens, children’s rallies, Sichos on fast days, individual audiences with the Rebbe, and similar events.

• Footage by Reb Sholom Ber Goldstein and other Goldstein family members, capturing beautiful scenes going back to the earliest years of the Rebbe’s leadership, many in stunning clarity.

• Reb Levi Freidin’s Tishrei films, beginning from 5736 (1975), document the precious moments of Tishrei with the Rebbe. The films that Fredin produced and screened at the time brought thousands of people in Eretz Yisrael to the Rebbe. 

• The full Farbrengens filmed by JEM from 5731 (1971), and later broadcasted live on television from 5740 (1980).

JEM.tv is the user-friendly home for browsing all these precious moments. They are available to view by date at JEM.tv/dates, and JEM is constantly innovating new ways to enhance the browsing experience of these vast collections. Recent updates on JEM.tv conveniently bring together multiple angles of the same event, bringing the viewing experience to an entirely new level!

JEM is proud to bring this precious media content to the world, and is committed to doing even more. They invite anyone in possession of films or other media of the Rebbe to please contact JEM at JEM@jemedia.org so they can be published.

The JEM Foundation invites you to join an unforgettable event on Tuesday evening, Motzaei Gimmel Tamuz: Brighter Than Ever. Donate to the JEM Foundation and join the experience here!