Film Sorter

1945

Dir. Ferenc Török
(91 min, Hungary, 2017)
Narrative

It’s August 1945 − an uneasy stillness pervades a small Hungarian village longing for a return to normalcy after the war. Two strangers arrive—they are father and son; they are Holocaust survivors.

77 Steps

Dir. Ibtisam Mara'ana
(56 min, Israel, 2010)
Documentary

The personal journey of the director Ibtisam Mara’ana, who leaves her Arab-Muslim village and moves to Tel-Aviv, along the way encountering both discrimination and an unexpected love.

Presented as part of the 7th Annual Community Education Day on Arab Citizens of Israel.

And When I Die, I Won’t Stay Dead

Dir. Billy Woodberry
(89 min, United States, 2015)
Documentary

Bob Kaufman is one of the Beat Generation’s most overlooked artists. Filmmaker Billy Woodberry−leader of the L.A. Rebellion film movement−offers a cinematic ode to Kaufman’s life, work, and legacy.

Angel Wagenstein: Art is a Weapon

Dir. Andrea Simon
(84 min, BulgariaUnited States, 2017)
Documentary

Bulgarian-Jewish filmmaker, partisan hero, screenwriter, and author Angel Wagenstein demonstrates the power of art to act as a revolutionary bulwark against oppressive governments and ideologies.

Angry Harvest | WJFF Visionary Award

Dir. Agnieszka Holland
(105 min, Poland, 1985)
Narrative

Sponsored by the Dweck Family
2017 WJFF Visionary Award honoree Agnieszka Holland joins us for a Q&A, Award ceremony, and a screening of her Oscar nominated film Angry Harvest.

An Average Story

Dir. Yaniv Segalovich
(18 min, Israel, 2016)
Narrative Short

When Avi Cohen is told by the Central Bureau of Statistics that he is the most average man who ever lived, his life is turned upside down.

Bacon & God’s Wrath

Dir. Sol Friedman
(9 min, Canada, 2015)
Documentary Short

A 90-year-old Jewish woman reflects on her life’s experiences as she prepares to try bacon for the first time.

Bal Ej: The Hidden Jews of Ethiopia

Dir. Irene Orleansky
(96 min, Israel, 2016)
Documentary

Following a hundred-year-old account of prominent Jewish scholar Jacque Faitlovich, filmmaker and distinguished ethnomusicologist Irene Orleansky travels to Africa to discover and explore a small and secretive group of Ethiopian Jews.

Ben-Gurion, Epilogue

Dir. Yariv Mozer
(55 min, FranceIsrael, 2016)
Documentary

It is 1968, and Ben-Gurion is 82 years old. He lives in the seclusion of his home in the desert removed from all political discourse, which allows him a unique perspective on the Zionist movement.

Between Worlds

Dir. Miya Hatav
(84 min, Israel, 2016)
Narrative

Visiting their son in a Jerusalem hospital in the aftermath of a terrorist attack, Orthodox couple Bina and Meir form a surprising bond with Amal, a beautiful young Arab woman, seemingly there to attend to her dying father.

Blessed

Dir. Prague Benbenisty
(16 min, Israel, 2015)
Narrative Short

In her big Moroccan family, Zohara is the daughter everyone takes for granted, while her beautiful younger sister Oshrit about to get married. On the day of Oshrit’s henna ceremony, Zohara steals her blessing with unforeseen consequences for all.

The Bloom of Yesterday

Dir. Chris Kraus
(125 min, AustriaGermany, 2016)
Narrative

Spotlight. A self-serious German Holocaust researcher is struggling with his complicated family history and flagging career. At the height of his crisis, he’s assigned a new intern, who might be his exact opposite.

Body and Soul: An American Bridge

Dir. Robert Philipson
(58 min, United States, 2016)
Documentary

Examining the fascinating history of the titular jazz standard, filmmaker Robert Philipson explores the fraternity and conflict between African American and Jewish American musicians that left an indelible mark on this country’s cultural history.

Cabaret

Dir. Bob Fosse
(123 min, United States, 1972)
Narrative

WJFF Classics—45^th Anniversary Presentation. In 1930s Berlin, impulsive and morally liberal agent provocateur Sally Bowles (Liza Minnelli) meets the scholarly and handsome Bryan (Michael York), and the two develop an intimate relationship.

The Chop

Dir. Lewis Rose
(17 min, United Kingdom, 2015)
Narrative Short

A comedy about a charismatic Kosher butcher who loses his job, cannot find work at other Kosher shops, and instead decides to pretend to be Muslim in order to get work at a Halal butchery.

A Classy Broad

Dir. Anne Goursaud
(93 min, United States, 2016)
Documentary

Marcia Nasatir broke through the film industry’s glass ceiling back in the 1970s. The Jewish San Antonian became a successful producer and the first woman to serve as vice president of production at a major Hollywood studio (United Artists).

Cloudy Sunday

Dir. Manoussos Manoussakis
(118 min, Greece, 2016)
Narrative

A smash box-office hit in Greece, Cloudy Sunday tracks a tumultuous wartime romance between a Jewish girl and Christian resistance fighter set against the backdrop of Thessaloniki’s vibrant Sephardic community.

Clueless

Dir. Amy Heckerling
(97 min, United States, 1995)
Narrative

Spotlight. Director Amy Heckerling in person! Special screening of iconic 90s teen comedy starring Alicia Silverstone and Paul Rudd.

Prior to the show, join us for As If, A Clueless Night for drinks, games, a photo booth, and more.

Cowlick

Dir. Lindsey Sitz
(11 min, United States, 2016)
Narrative Short

A short comedy about Cole Schwartzman, an anxiety-plagued tween, on the morning of his Bar Mitzvah. Cole is convinced that if the day doesn’t go perfectly, it means absolute disaster for his impending manhood. He quickly learns that some things in life can’t be controlled.

Curpigeon

Dir. Dmitry Milkin
(10 min, United States, 2016)
Narrative Short

A beautifully animated story illustrating the true power of community. The story revolves around six park pigeons and their old men pals, who come together to help one of their own overcome a great loss.

Dad in Training

Dir. Cyril Gelblat
(98 min, France, 2015)
Narrative

Obsessed with making music, Antoine takes his marriage to Alice, a beautiful, accomplished magistrate and loving mother to their daughters, for granted—until she throws him out, files for divorce, and leaves the girls on his doorstep!

Daughter of the Bride

Dir. Tamar Rudov
(15 min, Israel, 2016)
Narrative Short

Tirza lives in her own isolated world, slightly out of touch with reality. One day she is forced out of her shell, and she meets an older beautician who breaks through to her with her kindness. World Premiered at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival.

Dimona Twist

Dir. Michal Aviad
(70 min, Israel, 2016)
Documentary

Michal Aviad (The Women Pioneers) follows the lives of seven North African and Polish women who arrive to Israel by boat in the 1950s and 1960s and are sent straight to Dimona, a newly formed desert town.

Doing Jewish: A Story From Ghana

Dir. Gabrielle Zilkha
(84 min, CanadaGhanaUnited States, 2016)
Documentary

When Gabrielle Zilkha, a Canadian filmmaker working in Accra, gets a call from her mother telling her that she’s found Jews with whom to celebrate Rosh Hashanah, Zilkha sets off to find the tiny but vibrant Sefwi Jewish community.

El Hara

Dirs. Margaux FitoussiMo Scarpelli
(15 min, FranceTunisiaUnited States, 2017)
Documentary Short

For more than 700 years, thousands of Jews lived in the city of Tunis. Most of them lived in a ‘city within a city,’ a neighborhood called El Hara. One of its residents became the most celebrated Tunisian writer of the twentieth century: Albert Memmi.

The Exception

Dir. David Leveaux
(107 min, United Kingdom, 2016)
Narrative

A riveting WWII thriller filled with espionage and romance in equal measure, The Exception follows German soldier Stefan Brandt (Jai Courtney) as he investigates exiled German Monarch Kaiser Wilhelm II (Christopher Plummer).

Exit: Music

Dir. James Murdoch
(82 min, CanadaGermanyIsraelUnited States, 2016)
Documentary

Exit: Music investigates anti-Semitism in the music industry and the Third Reich’s hijacking of German music by examining the lives and exile of influential composers Paul Ben-Haim, Adolf Busch, Walter Branfels, Erich Korngold, and Mieczyslaw Weinberg.

Family Commitments

Dir. Hanno Olderdissen
(85 min, Germany, 2015)
Narrative

After two years of dating, David pops the question, and Khaled’s answer is unequivocally, “Yes!” Tying the knot proves challenging however, courtesy of a homophobic Arab father and a pseudo-orthodox, overbearing Jewish mother.

Fanny’s Journey | Closing Night

Dir. Lola Doillon
(94 min, BelgiumFrance, 2016)
Narrative

Sponsored by Elise and Marc Lefkowitz
It’s 1943, and 12-year-old Fanny stays hidden in a home far from her parents. When she is forced to flee, Fanny ends up leading a group of eight children heading across occupied France.

Fog in August

Dir. Kai Wessel
(126 min, AustriaGermany, 2016)
Narrative

Based on a true story, a harrowing tale of a Roma boy’s experiences with the Nazi euthanasia program while he is held in a mental hospital.

Forever Pure

Dir. Maya Zinshtein
(85 min, IrelandIsraelNorwayUnited Kingdom, 2016)
Documentary

The Beitar football club − the most popular and controversial soccer team in Israel − deals with racist outrage from fans after signing two Muslim players.

The Freedom to Marry

Dir. Eddie Rosenstein
(86 min, United States, 2016)
Documentary

An insider’s look at the organizers and carefully structured campaign behind the marriage equality movement—now known as one of the most successful civil rights initiatives in modern history.

A German Life

Dirs. Christian KrönesFlorian WeigensamerRoland SchrotthoferOlaf S. Müller
(107 min, Austria, 2016)
Documentary

Brunhilde Pomsel got closer to Nazi-Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels than anyone else. Aged 105 during filming, she used to work as secretary and stenographer for one of worst criminals in history.

The Guys Next Door

Dirs. Amy GellerAllie Humenuk
(74 min, United States, 2016)
Documentary

Raised in a Jewish family, Rachel and her husband Tony are a traditional married couple with their three teenage children. Less traditional is Rachel’s decision, at 41, to become a surrogate for Erik and his husband Sandro, not once, but twice within two years.

Harmonia

Dir. Ori Sivan
(98 min, Israel, 2016)
Narrative

A contemporary adaptation of the biblical tale of Abraham, Sarah, and Hagar, set in the world of the Jerusalem Philharmonic Orchestra. Nominated for 4 Ophir (Israeli Academy) Awards.

The History of Love

Dir. Radu Mihăileanu
(134 min, CanadaFrance, 2016)
Narrative

Spotlight. Based on Nicole Krauss’ bestselling novel, The History of Love is a sprawling saga of undaunted ardor and merciless twists of fate. Featuring a brilliant cast including Gemma Arterton, Derek Jacobi, and Elliott Gould.

Holy Zoo

Dir. Katharina Waisburd
(60 min, Germany, 2016)
Documentary

In the Jerusalem Biblical Zoo, Israelis & Palestinians and Jews & Muslims encounter each other every day. They meet as visitors or work as animal attendants side-by-side—something quite ordinary in other countries, but a telling exception here.

The Hourglass Sanatorium

Dir. Wojciech Jerzy Has
(125 min, Poland, 1973)
Narrative

WJFF Classics. Wojciech Jerzy Has’ restored masterpiece conjures a surrealist dreamscape in which past and present collide.

After the screening, Columbia professor Annette Insdorf delivers a talk, and signs her new book, Intimations: The Cinema of Wojciech Has.

How Long, Not Long

Dirs. Michelle KranotUri Kranot
(6 min, Denmark, 2016)
Narrative Short

A visual journey that challenges us to think about a universal belonging unconfined to a city, region, or national boundary in an age where xenophobia, nationalism, and intolerance are ubiquitous. Winner of the Fipresci Award at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival.

In Between

Dir. Maysaloun Hamoud
(102 min, FranceIsrael, 2016)
Narrative

Three Palestinian women sharing an apartment in the vibrant heart of Tel Aviv find themselves in a complicated balancing act between tradition and modernity, citizenship and culture, and fealty and freedom.

In Other Words

Dir. Tal Kantor
(6 min, Israel, 2016)
Short

A man recalls a moment of a lost opportunity to communicate with his daughter. Their brief meeting after years apart renders his words meaningless.

Jerry Lewis: The Man Behind the Clown

Dir. Gregory Monro
(61 min, FranceUnited States, 2016)
Documentary

Martin Scorsese, Jonathan Rosenbaum, and other film luminaries examine Jerry Lewis’ groundbreaking and controversial career—from film credits such as The Bellboy and The Nutty Professor to his edgy stand-up material.

A Jew Must Die

Dir. Jacob Berger
(73 min, Switzerland, 2016)
Narrative

Popular myth holds that Switzerland remained an innocent bystander during WWII. Famed writer Jacques Chessex powerfully repudiates this notion when, after a lengthy period of silence, he shares what he witnessed as a young boy. Stars Bruno Ganz (Downfall).

Jewish Blind Date

Dir. Anaëlle Morf
(15 min, Switzerland, 2015)
Narrative Short

Unhappy in love, Mary Lou decides to reconnect with her religious roots by marrying an observant Jew. In order to get married, she has to go to a Shidduch, a matchmaking event meant to lead to marriage.

Joe’s Violin

Dir. Kahane Cooperman
(26 min, United States, 2016)
Documentary Short

In this Oscar^®-nominated documentary short, a 91-year-old Holocaust survivor donates his violin of 70 years to a local instrument drive, changing the life of a 12-year-old schoolgirl from America’s poorest congressional district and, unexpectedly, his own.

Journey Birds

Dir. Daphna Awadish
(9 min, AustriaFranceIsraelItaly, 2016)
Documentary Short

A visually striking combination of animated and live action stories that offer a powerful cinematic commentary on immigration.

Keep Quiet

Dirs. Sam BlairJoseph Martin
(90 min, HungaryUnited Kingdom, 2016)
Documentary

As vice-president of Hungary’s far-right extremist party, Csanad Szegedi espoused anti-Semitic rhetoric and Holocaust denials, but found his life upended when his own Jewish roots were revealed. Keep Quiet depicts Szegedi’s three-year journey to embrace his newfound religion.

Klasse

Dir. Malia Bruker
(9 min, GermanyUnited States, 2016)
Documentary Short

An intimate cast of German middle school students and professional dancers bring to life letters written between young classmates as they left one by one on the Kindertransport, reimagining the courageous spirit of children with uncertain futures, both then and now.

Let Yourself Go

Dir. Francesco Amato
(99 min, Italy, 2016)
Narrative

Elia (Toni Servillo, The Great Beauty) is a distinguished psychoanalyst who has little patience for physical exertion of any kind. When fate pairs him with Claudia—a personal trainer obsessed with the cult of the body—the circumstances threaten to drive him right out of his celebrated mind.

A Letter to Mother

Dir. Joseph Green
(106 min, Poland, 1939)
Narrative

WJFF Classics. Restored 35mm courtesy of The National Center for Jewish Film. This tale of family disintegration and poverty serves as a metaphor for the displacement facing European Jews in 1939.

Part of An Evening of Yiddish Culture.

Liberty Heights | WJFF Visionary Award

Dir. Barry Levinson
(126 min, United States, 1999)
Narrative

2017 Visionary Award honoree Barry Levinson joins us for a Q&A, Award ceremony, and a screening of his film Liberty Heights.

Love Is Thicker Than Water

Dirs. Ate de JongEmily Harris
(105 min, United Kingdom, 2016)
Narrative

Opposites attract when Vida, an urbane Jewish cellist from London, falls in love with Arthur, a working class bike courier from Wales. Their class and cultural differences—not to mention disapproving families—quickly test the relationship.

The Margaret Lambert Story

Dir. Nina Horowitz
(24 min, United States, 2016)
Documentary Short

German-Jewish athlete Margaret Lambert is barred from competition during Hitler’s 1936 Berlin Olympic games, despite being one of the best high jumpers in the world. Today at 102, she tells her story and proves that against all odds, courage can triumph.

Memory’s Flight (Shorts Program)

(74 min, AustriaDenmarkFranceGermanyIsraelItalyTunisia, 2016-17)
Shorts Program

These six short works glide between memory and history and take a bird’s eye view of our shared past; our collective remembrances; and the deeply rooted, and multifaceted, identities forged in the wake of history’s passing.

Menashe

Dir. Joshua Z. Weinstein
(81 min, IsraelUnited States, 2017)
Narrative

Spotlight. Deep in the heart of New York’s ultra-orthodox Hasidic Jewish community, a grocery store clerk struggles to provide for and responsibly parent his young son following the death of his wife. A major hit of the 2017 Sundance Film Festival.

Moos

Dir. Job Gosschalk
(91 min, Netherlands, 2016)
Narrative

In this charming, Amsterdam-set comedy, Moos has put her life on hold long enough; she’s finally set to pursue her dream of going to acting school. Not actually having been accepted is only a minor hiccup…

Mordechai

Dir. Benjamin Bee
(14 min, United Kingdom, 2017)
Narrative Short

Daniel, an observant orthodox Jew, hasn’t seen his identical twin brother Mordechai in many years, and the two lead vastly different lives. On the day of their father’s funeral, they’re forced into a reunion of sorts in this touching and humorous fable about faith and family.

Murder in Polna (Parts 1 & 2)

Dirs. Viktor PolesnýVaclav Jester
(180 min, Czech Republic, 2016)
Narrative

A riveting, timely, and chilling historical drama that explores the Hilsner affair, a criminal investigation that veered dangerously off course due to a simmering anti-Semitism in 1899 Czechoslovakia.

My Dear Children: The Untold Story of the Pogroms (Work in Progress)

Dirs. LeeAnn DanceCliff Hackel
(68 min, United States, 2017)
Documentary

Years after her father’s death, using a letter written by her grandmother as a guide, Judy sets out from South Africa to explore the family’s roots in Ukraine.

My Hero Brother

Dir. Yonatan Nir
(77 min, Israel, 2016)
Documentary

A group of remarkable young people with Down syndrome embark on a demanding trip through the Indian Himalayas, accompanied by their brothers and sisters.

Nikitov (Concert)

Widely acclaimed for their outstanding interpretations of traditional Yiddish songs as well as innovative Yiddish reinterpretations of hits from artists such as Leonard Cohen, Dolly Parton, and the Rolling Stones, Nikitov prove that Yiddish music is very much alive and thriving.

Presented as part of An Evening of Yiddish Culture.

OMG, I’m a Robot

Dirs. Tal GoldbergGal Zelezniak
(90 min, Israel, 2016)
Narrative

Dumped by his sweetheart for being too sensitive, Danny is overwhelmed with sadness and decides to cut himself—only to discover that instead of blood, sparks shoot out and spliced wires protrude: turns out he’s a robot!

On The Map

Dir. Dani Menken
(85 min, Israel, 2016)
Documentary

Spotlight. A fast-moving and emotional documentary about the 1977 Maccabee Tel-Aviv basketball team—a squad that no one believed could win, but ended up toppling the four-time defending European championship Soviet club.

Operation Wedding

Dir. Anat Zalmanson Kuznetsov
(62 min, IsraelLatvia, 2016)
Documentary

In 1970, a group of Jewish dissidents plotted to hijack an empty plane and escape the USSR. Caught by the KGB, two were sentenced to death, and the rest assigned hard labor. 45 years later, our filmmaker reveals the story of her parents: “heroes” in the West, “terrorists” in Russia.

Paradise

Dir. Andrei Konchalovsky
(131 min, GermanyRussia, 2016)
Narrative

Russia’s Oscar® submission follows the lives of three souls that intertwine in Nazi Europe: a Russian member of the French resistance; the French collaborator who entraps her; and an idealistic SS officer assigned to root out concentration camp corruption.

Passing the Baton (Shorts Program)

(71 min, IsraelUnited States, 2015-2016)
Shorts Program

A compilation of short films that revolves around our legacies − big and small. What do we leave to the next generation, to our friends and family members? If, in service of bettering the world around us, we could gift one skill, one hard-earned piece of knowledge, or one item, what would it be?

Past Life

Dir. Avi Nesher
(103 min, Israel, 2016)
Narrative

In what is arguably Avi Nesher’s most daring film to date, two sisters, the daughters of Holocaust survivors, investigate a taboo topic in 1977 Jerusalem: the mystery of their father’s survival in Poland during WWII.

People That Are Not Me

Dir. Hadas Ben Aroya
(80 min, Israel, 2016)
Narrative

Heralded as the Israeli answer to Girls and Frances Ha, Hadas Ben Aroya’s assured debut feature is a personal tour-de-force that tackles modern romance in all of its technological confusion, forced aloofness, and loveless sexuality.

The Postman in Underwear

Dirs. Daniel BinstedBen Ziv
(15 min, Israel, 2016)
Narrative Short

The story of an eccentric postman in the throes of a first-time love. In an attempt to help him express his feelings, two brothers seek to clarify the difference between romantic fantasy and real love.

The Pulitzer at 100

Dir. Kirk Simon
(91 min, United States, 2016)
Documentary

From Oscar®-winning director Kirk Simon (Strangers No More) comes an illuminating and exhilarating new film about the history and legacy of the Pulitzer Prize.

A Quiet Heart

Dir. Eitan Anner
(92 min, Israel, 2016)
Narrative

In present day Jerusalem—where the gulf between the secular and religious communities often seems impossibly large—a secular young woman from Tel Aviv seeks refuge from the pressure of her life as a concert pianist.

Rabbi Wolff – A Gentleman Before God

Dir. Britta Wauer
(91 min, Germany, 2016)
Documentary

William Wolff is perhaps the world’s most unconventional rabbi. The film traces Wolff’s hectic routine and his eventful past: from fleeing Nazi Germany as a child, to his career as a London-based political correspondent, to becoming a rabbi.

Scarred Hearts

Dir. Radu Jude
(141 min, GermanyRomania, 2016)
Narrative

Inspired by Jewish-Romanian author Max Blecher’s acclaimed autobiographical novel, Scarred Hearts is reminiscent of an intellectually fiery The Diving Bell and the Butterfly.

Spring Chicken

Dir. Tamir Elterman
(10 min, IsraelUnited States, 2016)
Documentary Short

Anny Junek, a 94-year-old Holocaust survivor, loves dressing up for Purim. In fact, she’s the three-time champion of her Israeli retirement home’s annual costume contest (as a bride, a Smurf, a doctor, and a handyman). She basks in the element of surprise and never reveals her costume before the contest.

Stars

Dir. Konrad Wolf
(88 min, BulgariaEast Germany, 1959)
Narrative

WJFF Classics. This gripping drama, based on the personal story of screenwriter Angel Wagenstein during the Holocaust in the Balkans, sheds light on the Sephardic experience of WWII.

Stefan Zweig, Farewell to Europe

Dir. Maria Schrader
(106 min, AustriaFranceGermany, 2016)
Narrative

Actress-turned-director Maria Schrader (the brilliant lead in Aimee & Jaguar) tells the story of the Stefan Zweig’s exile years in five lyrical chapters, bringing to light the liminal expatriate existence of one of the century’s greatest minds.

Strange Victory

Dir. Leo Hurwitz
(64 min, United States, 1948)
Documentary

WJFF Classics. Collaging nonfiction materials, newsreel footage, and Leo Hurwitz’s brilliantly-shot scenes, Strange Victory powerfully documents the racism and anti-Semitism of post-WWII America.

Subte-Polska

Dir. Alejandro Magnone
(99 min, Argentina, 2015)
Narrative

Tadeusz was a young Polish émigré to Argentina, a brigadier in the Spanish Civil War, and a construction worker. Now 90, he hits the road in search of former lovers, friends, and his youthful vigor.

Supergirl

Dir. Jessie Auritt
(80 min, United States, 2016)
Documentary

When a nine-year-old girl breaks a powerlifting world record, she turns into an international phenomenon. Naomi Kutin seems like a typical Orthodox Jewish pre-teen, until her extraordinary talent transforms everything.

Thank You For Calling

Dir. Pascal Elbé
(80 min, France, 2015)
Narrative

This suspenseful comedy-thriller stars Vincent Elbaz (Would I Lie to You) as Gilbert Perez, a brilliant con artist who manages to trick employees of large French businesses into stealing money from their companies.

To Be or Not To Be

Dir. Ernst Lubitsch
(99 min, United States, 1942)
Narrative

WJFF Classics—75th Anniversary Screening! Carole Lombard’s last film is much more highly regarded today than at the time of its release. Cast as the wife of Jack Benny, a hammy Hamlet in an acting troupe stranded in wartime Poland, she was never more alluring or more in control of her craft.

Uncle Howard

Dir. Aaron Brookner
(96 min, United States, 2016)
Documentary

25 years after Howard Brookner’s premature AIDS-related death, his nephew, Aaron, sets out to find the lost negative of Burroughs: The Movie, his uncle’s critically-acclaimed portrait of William S. Burroughs.

Walk a Mile in My Shoes (Shorts Program)

(98 min, CanadaIsraelSwitzerlandUnited KingdomUnited States, 2015-17)
Shorts Program

Have you ever woken up and found that you’re living someone else’s life? That you’ve traded places, for good or for ill? This collection of comedic short films centers on this key moment of transformations.

The Women’s Balcony | Opening Night

Dir. Emil Ben-Shimon
(96 min, Israel, 2016)
Narrative

Sponsored by the Jacob & Charlotte Lehrman Foundation
An accident leads to a gender rift in a devout Orthodox community in Jerusalem, in this rousing, gold-hearted tale.

The Wonderful Kingdom of Papa Alaev

Dirs. Tal BardaNoam Pinchas
(74 min, Israel, 2016)
Documentary

Meet Tajikistan’s answer to the Jackson family. Allo “Papa” Alaev dominates all aspects of his music clan’s lives, on stage and off. All of his children live in a single-family home in Tel Aviv. All but one, that is—an intrepid daughter who breaks from the fold.

The Writer (3 Episodes)

Dir. Shay Capon
(75 min, Israel, 2016)
Narrative

Sayed Kashua centers The Writer on his fictional self, Kateb, who, after achieving runaway success with TV hit Arab Labor, becomes the poster boy for the new age Arab-Israeli, possessing the ability to shift seamlessly between the two cultures.

Zuzana: Music is Life

Dirs. Peter GetzelsHarriet Gordon Getzels
(83 min, Czech RepublicUnited States, 2017)
Documentary

The triumphant story told of Zuzana Ruzickova, now 90, and how she became a world-famous harpsichordist and interpreter of Bach under the Communist regime in Czechoslovakia, after surviving three concentration camps as a teenager.