Trailer Drops for Holocaust Miniseries About Dutch Secretary Who Hid Anne Frank’s Family From Nazis

Shiryn Ghermezian

Jan and Miep Gies, played by Joe Cole and Bel Powley, are visited by Mr. Van Pels, played by Andy Nyman. Photo: National Geographic for Disney/Dusan Martincek

National Geographic released on Tuesday a trailer for its upcoming limited series based on the true story of Miep Gies, the secretary of Otto Frank in the Netherlands who helped hide the Frank family and keep them safe from the Nazis during the Holocaust.

A Small Light stars BAFTA-nominated actress Bel Powley as Gies a young, married woman who was asked by her boss, Otto — played by Emmy-nominated actor Liev Schreiber — if he would help hide his family from the Nazis and she agreed without hesitation. For the next two years, Gies and her husband, played by Joe Cole, with the help of several others, watched over the Franks, as well as the van Pels and Pfeffer families hiding in the secret annex in Amsterdam during World War II.

Gies also held on to Anne’s diary, kept it hidden from the Nazis and returned it to Otto after the war. He later published his daughter’s diary and it became an international best-seller.

“Told with a modern sensibility, A Small Light shakes the cobwebs off history and makes Miep’s story feel relevant, forcing audiences to ask themselves what they would have done in Miep’s shoes; and in modern times, asking if they would have the courage to stand up to hatred,” National Geographic said in a released statement. “Some stood by; Miep stood up.”

The series title comes from something Gies said after the war about her heroic efforts: “I don’t like being called a hero because no one should ever think you have to be special to help others. Even an ordinary secretary or a housewife or a teenager can turn on a small light in a dark room.”

“When we first heard the remarkable story of Miep Gies we were gripped and deeply moved,” said Carolyn Bernstein, EVP of scripted and documentary films at National Geographic. “We were also convinced that this limited series about an everyday superhero – one that most people around the world have never heard of – needed an unprecedented rollout. We are determined to bring A Small Light to the largest global audience possible and hope this ambitious rollout across multiple networks and streaming platforms allows audiences to fall in love with and be inspired by Miep just as we have.”

A Small Light, produced by ABC Signature and Keshet Studios, premieres May 1 on National Geographic and will begin streaming the next day on Disney+ and Hulu as well as on the Nat Geo TV and ABC apps. New episodes air every Monday. Nat Geo WILD and Lifetime will also air the first two episodes and on May 6 Freeform will encore the premiere episodes.

Watch the trailer for A Small Light below.