Ninth-graders Ellie Gottesman and Isabel Funk of Mercer Island High School received an honorable mention in the film category of the Holocaust Center for Humanity’s 2017 Writing, Art, and Film Contest.

Gottesman and Funk’s film is an important look at the rise of anti-Semitic acts in Mercer Island, the Seattle area, and the country and it can be viewed at www.youtube.com/watch?v=tE3_SBDVXFU&feature=youtu.be.

They were honored in a community reception on July 16 at the Henry and Sandra Friedman Holocaust Center for Humanity and received a monetary prize. Their work will be highlighted at the Holocaust Center, at events, and in publications throughout the year.

This year 913 students entered the Center’s Writing, Art and Film Contest.

“When the entries pour in from students around the state, from rural and urban public schools, parochial schools, students who are home schooled — really all over — we see that students strive and genuinely intend to improve our world. It’s very inspiring, and tells us that our work at the center is as important today as it’s ever been,” said Ilana Cone Kennedy, director of education.

For more information about the Holocaust Center, visit HolocaustCenterSeattle.org.