The Tattooist of Auschwitz is the story of one man, Lali (played by Jonah Hauer-King), a Slovakian Jew, who, in 1942, was deported to Auschwitz, the concentration camp where over a million Jews were murdered during the Holocaust.

Shortly after arrival, Lali was made one of the Tätowierer (tattooists), charged to ink identification numbers onto fellow prisoners’ arms. One day, he met Gita (played by Anna Próchniak) when tattooing her prisoner number on her arm, leading to a love that defies the horrors around them. So began a courageous and unforgettable, story. Under constant guard from a volatile Nazi SS officer Baretzki (played by Jonas Nay), Lali and Gita became determined to keep each other alive.

Around 60 years later, Lali (portrayed by Harvey Keitel) then in his 80s, met aspiring writer Heather Morris (played by Melanie Lynskey). Recently widowed, Lali found the courage to tell the world his story. In recounting his past to Heather, Lali finally confronted the traumatic ghosts of his youth and relived his memories of falling in love in the darkest of places.