Steven Lidz lives a happy and secure life in the home of his loving mother and inventor father in 1962 Los Angeles. However, things take a tragic turn when his mom, Selma, becomes terminally ill with cancer. Because Steven`s father can`t bring himself to deal honestly with Selma`s impending death, Steven chooses to live with his two eccentric uncles, Danny and Arthur. While Danny suffers from paranoia and sees anti-Semitic conspiracies everywhere, Arthur is a childlike pack rat who has filled their apartment with stacks of newspapers and hundreds of small items he`s found in the streets. Despite their strange lifestyles, the uncles manage to usher Steven through this difficult period of his life, and find a creative way of dealing with his grief. Adapted from the touching childhood memoirs of Franz Lidz. Academy Award Nomination: Best Original Musical or Comedy Score.