Kirschenbaum Productions

05/06/2026

My mother and I have the relationship I once only dreamed of having.

But it wasn’t always this way.

My journey to forgiveness is shared in my films and my book, and today our story is helping others believe that healing is possible.

For Mother’s Day, I’m offering *LOOK AT US NOW, MOTHER!* and *MY NOSE* at 50% off through May 15 with code MOTHER.

*Bullied to Besties* is available in paperback, Kindle, and Audible. The audiobook releases May 10 on Spotify, Barnes & Noble, and more platforms.

Links in comments.

01/12/2026

If you know someone in Orlando, Florida who could use real tools (and real inspiration) for navigating complicated family relationships—please share this. 💛

For most of my life, my mother and I weren’t close. I was hurt — and she was the one hurting me. I spent years living with the aftermath… until I found a path that changed everything:

Forgiveness isn’t approval. It’s freedom.

It’s how I stopped letting the past keep its grip on my life.
That journey became my memoir BULLIED TO BESTIES: A Daughter’s Journey to Forgiveness—

and I’d love to meet you in Orlando for a Book Talk + Signing at Barnes & Noble.

And yes—my mom will be there with me, and we’ll do a Q&A together (because the most surprising part of this story is that we’re here… together… now).

📍 THURS, JAN 15 | 5–7 PM
Barnes & Noble (Plaza Venezia) • 7900 W. Sand Lake Rd

📍 SAT, JAN 17 | 2–3 PM
Barnes & Noble (Colonial Plaza Mkt Ctr) • 2418 E Colonial Plaza

✨ Publishers Weekly: “A mesmeric, riveting memoir about forgiveness.”

P.S. People always ask about my mom’s “secret” to longevity and mindset—I’ll have a few copies of her book, MILDRED’S MINDSET, with me (in the car) for anyone who wants one after the event.

Come for the story. Stay for the conversation.

You’ll leave with perspective—and practical tools you can use. 🤍

12/05/2025

There was a night when my mother ordered my brothers to lift my seven-year-old body onto the top of our refrigerator. They followed her orders, put me up there, and then they all sat down and kept eating dinner at the table below.
I remember the terror in my chest, the sting of being ignored, and the feeling that I didn’t truly belong to anyone in that room.

Read it below

Today on Substack, I’m sharing the dedication and prologue of my memoir, Bullied to Besties — the moment my story begins, long before forgiveness was even imaginable.

If this speaks to you, you can subscribe to get future posts — and I’ll be sharing more memoir excerpts and behind-the-scenes

How a terrified seven-year-old girl eventually began a lifelong journey toward forgiveness

11/28/2025

🎬 BLACK FRIDAY SPECIAL 🎬

Checking in from our family visit to wish you a happy holiday weekend! 🧡
Mom and I hope your Thanksgiving was peaceful, loving… or at least a little less stressful than years past.

If you’re navigating complicated family dynamics, our award-winning documentary LOOK AT US NOW, MOTHER! is for you. It’s the story of how my mother and I went from war zone to best friends—and how forgiveness changed both of our lives.

✨ BLACK FRIDAY DEAL – 35% OFF ✨
👉 Watch LOOK AT US NOW, MOTHER! on Gumroad
👉 Use code BLACKFRIDAY2025 at checkout
👉 Link in bio

Give yourself (or someone you love) the gift of hope, healing, and a whole lot of heart. ❤️

11/27/2025

🎬 BLACK FRIDAY SPECIAL 🎬

35% OFF my documentary LOOK AT US NOW, MOTHER!
This is the story of how I found my way to forgiveness—and how my mother, now 102 years old, became a social media sensation! Follow her journey .

This film makes a meaningful gift for anyone navigating complicated family relationships, or for those who love stories about resilience, reconciliation, and second chances.

Use code BLACKFRIDAY2025 at checkout:
👉 https://gayle.gumroad.com/l/launm/BLACKFRIDAY2025

Perfect for the holidays—give the gift of hope, healing, and a whole lot of heart. ❤️

A humorous, moving, intimate and courageous film following the transformation of an abusive mother and tumultuous mother-daughter relationship to that of acceptance and love as we follow the personal story of the filmmaker.New York Times feature"Heartwarming - a story of acceptance and forgiveness"....

10/28/2025

Was interviewed by Abby Pogrebin last night for her TV show "On the Spotlight" about my new memoir BULLIED TO BESTIES: A DAUGHTER'S JOURNEY TO FORGIVENESS.

Had fun!

Let me know what you think.

Here's the link to watch.

Abby Pogrebin welcomes Emmy Award-winning filmmaker and author Gayle Kirschenbaum to discuss "Bullied to Besties," her raw and uplifting memoir about transfo...

10/06/2025

Yesterday was a milestone. ✨

We had a great turnout at PT Knitwear for the launch of BULLIED TO BESTIES: A DAUGHTER’S JOURNEY TO FORGIVENESS—and we sold out of books. Deep thanks to Dr. Pamela Thompson (the therapist who worked with my mom and me) for moderating, and to PT Knitwear Bookstore for the terrific tech that brought Mildred in live on the big screen.

I left humbled.

Throughout the event—and afterward—people shared their stories with me, some publicly, some privately. Some were people I knew for years, So often what we see looks like a “normal” mother–daughter story, while the truth is carried in silence.
Hearing those truths was moving—and, at times, alarming. It reminded me why I wrote this book: to offer tools for healing and a path to real forgiveness for anyone who needs it.

📸 Photos from the day are below.
IF YOU ARE IN NY AREA, PLEASE COME TO OUR NEXT BOOK EVENT THIS WEDNESDAY

Next up: Wednesday, Oct 8 at 6:00 PM at the gorgeous Bibliotheque in SoHo on Mercer Street

AMY B SCHER, bestselling author known for her books on healing yourself will be moderating.

We’ll go deeper, take questions, and create a space where honest stories are safe to tell.

🎟️ Multiple ticket tiers available—including options with wine paired to the evening’s theme (cocktails included).

➡️ Tickets required — link in the comments.
PHOTOS COURTESY OF TINA BUCKMAN

09/21/2025

🌿 7 Steps to Finding Forgiveness · Step 1: Understanding 🌿

For a long time, I thought my mother was just mean—cruel, even. But then I began to look deeper.

I started digging into her past

I discovered the trauma and losses she carried from childhood

Suddenly, things began to make sense

Understanding someone’s history doesn’t excuse the harm, but it reframes it

Abusers are often wounded children in grown bodies

I stopped seeing a monster and started seeing a human being in pain

✨ Understanding her past was my first step toward forgiveness.

I created a free 7-Step guide to help you begin your own journey.
And my memoir, BULLIED TO BESTIES: A Daughter’s Journey to Forgiveness, shares how I forgave my mother and how, over years, we built the love and friendship you see today.

💜 Save this if you need courage for later, and share it with someone who might need it. Follow along—Step 2 will be up next.

👉 All links for my books, newsletter, free guide, films, merchandise, events, coaching, and more are in the comments.

08/19/2025

I'm excited to share that my memoir BULLIED TO BESTIES: A DAUGHTER'S JOURNEY TO FORGIVENESS just got a wonderful review in Publisher's Weekly. And it's available for pre-order on Amazon for the Kindle and Paperback version. Audio out in October.

Bullied to Besties: A Daughter's Journey to Forgiveness
By Gayle Kirschenbaum

This mesmeric memoir weighs the intricacies of mother-daughter relationships, as filmmaker Kirschenbaum recounts her abusive childhood at the hands of her mother, Mildred—and their eventual reconnection when she is an adult. “I felt like a caged animal in a circus that you look at for your entertainment or ignore,” Kirschenbaum writes, as she details the horrific events that plagued her youth, orchestrated by a harsh, critical mother who viewed her daughter as “useless.” That relentless treatment led Kirschenbaum to leave home at just 16 years old, fighting, as an adult, to gain footing amid her struggles with self-worth, trauma, and grief.

Though heartbreaking to read, Kirschenbaum’s narrative holds a deeper purpose than solely chronicling the trauma of an abusive childhood. As an adult, Kirschenbaum resolves to uncover and understand her family history, fueling her desperation to learn how she can forgive her mother. “I knew if I was going to set myself free of this mental bo***ge, this emotional prison, this anger, I would have to forgive my mother,” she writes—a conviction that drives her to engage in therapy, dig into old family movies and memories, and embark on terrifying, vulnerable conversations with Mildred.

Even when relaying painful moments, Kirschenbaum manages to infuse her writing with humor and hope—as in her recollection of she and her widowed mother teaming up to start dating again. In the end, Mildred undertakes her own healing journey, agreeing to work with Kirschenbaum to resolve their trauma, even when that means appearing on camera for her daughter’s documentary, Look At Us Now, Mother! The results of that work are riveting, as both Kirschenbaum and Mildred wade through anger, resentment, and grief—emerging on the other side with a beautifully wrought, hard-earned connection and an understanding that “the biggest gift you can give yourself is to forgive.”

If you want to be in the know please sign up here.

SIGN UP NOW to be the first to receive updates on this inspiring book on the power of forgiveness.

08/19/2025

My memoir Bullied to Besties: A Daughter’s Journey to Forgiveness comes out on September 27, National Forgiveness Day.

And it's available for pre-order now on Amazon.
Here's the link to sign up for it.

SIGN UP NOW to be the first to receive updates on this inspiring book on the power of forgiveness.

08/19/2025

My mother turns 102 in a few days.
These days, even pulling on her clothes leaves her huffing and puffing. She has to lie down and rest.

This is the same woman who, not long ago, insisted we go to the gym together—and then barked at me, “You’re slow as sh*t!” as I struggled to keep up. She wore everyone down with her relentless energy.

Watching her fade has been hard. Caring for her has been harder—and, strangely, healing. Forgiveness is what makes it possible. Without it, I could never sit beside her with tenderness now.

I just wrote about this in my latest Substack essay: “Behind the Scenes of Forgiveness.”

You can read it below. Please consider subscribing and you get them delivered to you.

And if you want to go deeper, my memoir Bullied to Besties: A Daughter’s Journey to Forgiveness comes out on September 27, National Forgiveness Day.

And if you want to go deeper, my memoir Bullied to Besties: A Daughter’s Journey to Forgiveness comes out on September 27, National Forgiveness Day.

At 102, my mother leans on me. But for years, she made me bend. Forgiveness turned torment into tenderness.

09/06/2024

This just out on the local ABC network in Florida!

Mildred Kirschenbaum's daughter posted a video to Instagram on her mother's 99th birthday that went viral and since then has been sharing Mildred's advice to her more than 115,000 followers.