A stellar lineup of award-winning international comedies, dramas, documentaries and shorts are slated for the Santa Barbara Jewish Film Festival, Wednesday, Nov. 1-Sunday, Nov. 5. at The New Vic Theatre. A full listing is at www.sbjewishfilmfestival.org.
An actor performs in a scene from the film “Less Than Kosher.” Credit: Courtesy photoThe festival opens Nov. 1 with four Israeli films: Romantic comedy “Paris Boutique,” nominated for six Israeli Academy Awards (Ophirs); coming-of-age drama “Sand Flakes;” and documentary “40 Steps” about a religious school asked to share its campus with a new school for refugee children.
Sponsored by the Israel Committee of Santa Barbara, the first day concludes with “The Monkey House,” nominated for 11 Ophir Awards, followed by a Q&A with the film’s director Avi Nesher in conversation with Gwyn Lurie, CEO/executive editor of The Montecito Journal.
Screenings on Nov. 2 open with “Burning off the Page,” a documentary about a Russian-American Yiddish-speaking female poet who dared to write about women’s sexuality and erotic subjects during the first half of the 20th century.
The documentary “Reckonings,” commissioned by the German Ministry of Finance and the Claims Conference, explores the untold story of reparations discussions for Holocaust survivors before the Luxembourg Agreements of 1952.
Next, the first of two shorts programs features stories of family, loss and memories: “Walking with Satva,” “The Walk,” Nobody Told Me,” “Elisheva & Ruthi,” and “The Fisherman’s Wife.” They will be followed by a panel discussion with community rabbis discussing Jewish traditions around death and burial.
Thursday closes with Canadian comedy “Less Than Kosher,” followed by a musical performance by the film’s star Shaina Silver-Baird, whose character Viv is forced to move home after her career as a pop singer fails.
Having long let go of her Jewish roots, Viv begrudgingly takes a job as cantor at her family’s synagogue and unleashes her incredible talent, bringing traditional Jewish songs to life and falling in love along the way.
Friday, Nov. 3 begins with “The Shadow of the Day,” an Italian love story set in the 1930s between a World War I fascist sympathizer and a young Jewish woman who comes to work in his restaurant.
Israeli documentary “Journey to the Past” follows five actors who travel to Poland to visit areas where Jewish communities were exterminated during the Holocaust; a trip that changes them forever.
Romantic comedy “Elik & Jimmy” follows two friends from their 20s serving in the army to their 30s when feelings have changed. Jimmy is no longer the chubby friend, but something more.
After Shabbat ends on Saturday evening, viewers will enjoy the French biopic “Simone Veil: Woman of the Century,” about the incredible life of a Holocaust survivor who became one of France’s most influential and beloved politicians.
The festival wraps up on Nov. 5 with:
Polish drama “March ’68,” which tells the story of love between a Jewish woman and a Gentile man who risk being torn apart by the rise of antisemitism during the 1960s.
Israeli drama “Barren” follows a young Hasidic woman desperate for a child who trusts the wrong person to help and ends up being shunned by her family. The film is followed by a panel of women from Chabad who can speak about Hasidic laws and customs around fertility.
The second shorts program of the festival features two comedies and two inspiring stories: “Grandma Bruce,” “Cut,” “Paddling of Life,” and “The Anne Frank Gift Shop.”
The festival’s final feature “Stay with Us” (“Reste un Peu”) stars beloved French-Moroccan-Jewish comedian Gad Elmaleh who returns to his parent’s home in Paris after three years in Los Angeles with a newfound love for the Virgin Mary, and plans to convert to Catholicism.
For a full listing and schedule of films visit www.sbjewishfilmfestival.org.
All access passes are on sale for $180 and offer five days of films, plus guest speakers, a musical performance, opening night reception, and coffee and bagels. Individual tickets will be sold onsite before each film for $18.
All net proceeds support the Jewish Federation of Greater Santa Barbara’s cultural programming, Portraits of Survival Holocaust education, and social support services.
Organized by the Jewish Federation of Greater Santa Barbara, the Santa Barbara Jewish Film Festival features five days of world-class international and independent comedies, dramas, documentaries, and shorts from Israel, Europe, Canada, and the U.S. premiering for the first time in Santa Barbara.
The Jewish Federation of Greater Santa Barbara comprises the Adam Bronfman Jewish Community Center, Jewish Family Service, and Camp Haverim. The federation offers Jewish educational, cultural, and religious programming, as well as social services in a gathering space in downtown Santa Barbara. For more, visit www.jewishsantabarbara.org.
