A Small Light: Disney+ release date, trailer and cast of Anne Frank drama with Bel Powley - who is Miep Gies?

A Small Light, a new historical drama from National Geographic, is coming to Disney+ at the start of May. It tells the story of Miep Gies, a young woman in 1930s Amsterdam who helped the Frank family hide from the Nazis for two years.

The series, which stars Bel Powley (Everything I Know About Love) as Miep Gies alongside Live Schreiber (Ray Donovan) as Otto Frank, comes from husband-and-wife screenwriting partners Tony Phelan and Joan Rater.

Here’s everything you need to know about A Small Light ahead of its release on Disney+.

What is A Small Light about?

The official Disney+ synopsis for A Small Light explains that “Miep Gies was young, carefree and opinionated — at a time when opinions got you killed ― when Otto Frank asked her to help hide his family from the Nazis during WWII. Without hesitation, Miep agreed. For the next two years, she and her daring and devoted husband, Jan, with several other everyday heroes, watched over the Frank, van Pels and Pfeffer families hiding in the secret annex."

Miep Gies is also remembered for preserving Anne Frank’s diary, with the intention of giving it back to her after the war. On learning that Anne had died in a concentration camp, Miep gave the diary to Otto, who arranged for its publication. 

Who stars in A Small Light?

Bel Powley plays Miep Giese, a young woman who worked for Otto Frank in Amsterdam. Powley is probably best known for starring in the film The Diary of a Teenage Girl, though you might also recognise her from more recent television roles in The Morning Show and Everything I Know About Love (or from a less recent television role in MI High).

Live Schreiber plays Otto Frank, father of Anne. Schreiber is perhaps best known as the lead of the television series Ray Donovan, but you might also recognise him from films like Scream, X-Men, and The French Dispatch. He can next be seen in Wes Anderson’s Asteroid City. 

They’re joined by Joe Cole (Gangs of London) as Miep’s husband Jan Gies, Amira Casar (Call Me By Your Name) as Otto’s wife Edith Frank, Billie Boullet as Anne Frank, Ashley Brooke as Margot Frank, and Daniel Donskoy (Victoria) as Karl Josef Silberbauer among others. 

Who writes and directs?

Husband and wife screenwriters Tony Phelan and Joan Rater created A Small Light and act as showrunners. Phelan and Rater are best known for their work on Grey’s Anatomy, where they served as executive producers and close collaborators with Shonda Rhimes. They’ve also worked on Law & Order: Trial By Jury, Council of Dads, and Threat Matrix.

Susanna Fogel serves as lead director on A Small Light. Fogel is best known for directing The Spy Who Dumped Me and co-writing Booksmart, though you might also have seen her work on The Flight Attendant, Utopia, and The Wilds. Her next film is an adaptation of the viral New Yorker story Cat Person.

Is there a trailer?

Yes, there is! You can watch it right here.

When can I watch A Small Light?

The first two episodes of A Small Light arrive on Disney+ on Monday 1 May, with two new episodes available each Monday thereafter. You can sign up for Disney+ right here.

How many episodes are there?

A Small Light is an eight-part drama, with each episode running to around 50 minutes long.

Where was A Small Light filmed?

A Small Light was filmed on location in Amsterdam, as well as the cities Hradec Králové and Prague in the Czech Republic. For obvious reasons, the series was unable to film in the real Anne Frank house, and a replica was built on a soundstage for us in A Small Light.

Why should I watch it?

It’s one to watch if you’re interested to see a familiar story retold from a different perspective, or if you’re a fan of Bel Powley and want to see her portray an often under-recognised figure from history.