Oscar nominee 'Joe's Violin' documents donation of Holocaust survivor's violin

HOLLYWOOD, LOS ANGELES -- The touching story of a 91-year-old Holocaust survivor and a 12-year-old girl will shine at the Oscars on Sunday. "Joe's Violin," a film about one man's act of kindness and the power music has on young lives, is nominated for Best Documentary Short.

"The idea of these two strangers being connected by a single instrument was very moving to me," said director Kahane Cooperman. "And I just decided to follow it."

"Joe's Violin" tells the story of one special musical instrument. The idea for the film came when Cooperman heard the story on a New York City radio station and it made her wonder if any of the instruments had a story to tell.

"Joe's Violin" did.

The "Joe" in the story is a Holocaust survivor who donated his instrument. It ended up at a middle school with young musician Brianna Perez.

"The story itself is incredible and having the opportunity to actually play on the violin is a plus," Perez said.

"When Brianna graduated and the next girl was given it, Brianna actually handed it to her in their graduation ceremony," Cooperman explained. "So it's going on and on through girls in the school for forever."

Brianna is now in high school and plans to make a career out of something she enjoys doing.

"I aspire to be a music teacher," she said. "To teach children how I feel when I play the violin and how they can be connected through an object and how they can apply it to their everyday lives."

Don't miss the 89th Oscars on Sunday, Feb. 26 at 7 p.m. ET| 4 p.m. PT LIVE on ABC. Red carpet coverage begins at 5 p.m. ET/2 p.m. PT with "On The Red Carpet At The Oscars." Check your local listings.