The Silicon Valley Jewish Film Festival is an
independent 501(c)(3) non-profit organization
Silicon Valley Jewish Film Festival begins 19th Season !
Silicon ValleyJewish Film
Festival
Schedules Special Screening of Israeli Oscar® Nominee!
AJAMI Nominated for Best Foreign Language Film.
Academy Awards® on March 7; Special Screening is March 3
For the third year in a row, an Israeli film has been nominated
for Best Foreign Language Film. The Silicon ValleyJewish
Film Festival, with our commitment to year-round programming, is
pleased to bring Ajami to the Silicon Valley. This is your opportunity
to enjoy an Oscar® nominee from Israel, three days before the Academy
Awards® ceremony!
We are also pleased to introduce you to yet another SVJFF venue.
This film will be offered at The Retro Dome (in the old Century
25 Theater) at Westgate Mall, 1694 Saratoga Avenue, San Jose.
Tickets in advance:
$11, general; $9.95, seniors and students At the door:
$13, general; $11, seniors and students
Ajami is in Arabic and Hebrew. 120 minutes.
Ajami is
one of only five nominees for Best Foreign Language film, and it's the third year
in a row that an Israeli movie has been considered.
"Ajami", is a mostly-Israeli Arab neighborhood
of Jaffa (Yafo), and the story is a gripping look at life in the "'hood".
The film portrays the crime, the loyalties, and the many challenges that exist
between the people of the neighborhood, some in the context of the broader Middle
East situation.
It was written by Scandar Copti, an Israeli Arab, and Yaron Shani, an Israeli
Jew. Seven years in the making, these two relative newcomers, have already garnered
a "Golden Camera: Special Mention" at the prestigious 2009 Cannes Film
Festival.
Silicon Valley Jewish Film Festival's Newest Additional Venue: The Retro
Dome
SILICON VALLEY JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL IS EXCITED TO OFFER TWO DISCOUNTS TO
VISIT THE RETRO DOME, WHERE EVERYTHING OLD IS NEW AGAIN!
The Retro Dome is San Jose's newest and grooviest performing arts center.
The former Century 25 Theatre at Westgate Mall in San Jose, California has been completely "reimagined" and
now sports a new name, a vintage vibe and a hip, retro-modern interior. With two
theatres, the Dome serves as a home to live professional musical theatre, retro film,
live music, and comedy.
Annual Survey Results
More than 210 of you completed the SVJFF filmgoer
survey following the 18th Annual Festival. The data we collected will help
us to continually improve the Festival. The overall results were that 95% of
you felt it was a positive (51%, excellent; 33%, good; 11%, satisfied) overall experience.
Only five percent were either disappointed, or extremely disappointed.
In addition, you voted for "For
My Father", followed by "Adam
Resurrected" and "Beau
Jest" as the Best Festival features. The Best Documentary honor
goes to "Menachem
and Fred", followed by "Blessed
is the Match" and
"Circumcise
Me!". You also told us that you like the special events that followed
many of the films, and that you are in favor of experiencing both movies and events
throughout the year. The most common criticism had to do with the SVJFF seating
policy as well as the tendency for many people in the audience to save seats for
others. We'll be examining all of this and will implement improvements where possible.
SVJFF News
Volunteers Welcome! Meeting Planned in February
On February 8 at 7:30 p.m. a meeting will be held to welcome new volunteers to the SVJFF.
If you would like to become a Film Festival volunteer, you are asked to attend this special
meeting. You will hear about upcoming plans and the opportunities for volunteerism. The
meeting will be held in Activity Room C, second floor of the Levy Family Campus (Addison
Penzak Jewish Community Center, Los Gatos). Please
go to our Volunteer page
to sign up.
New Film Festival
Board President; CFO Enters Second Term
After serving for two consecutive
years, Lorin Fink has stepped down as SVJFF president. Kudos go to him for his many accomplishments.
In December, Board elections were held and Bruce Entin has succeeded Lorin. Bruce has
been involved with the Festival as a board member and volunteer for four years and during
this time he has been very involved in the Festival’s
marketing and strategic planning. The Board also confirmed Yoram Rubin’s second
term as Chief Financial Officer. Yoram began with the Festival as a member of the Preview
Committee and, over the years, has taken on increasing responsibility. Most recently,
he has updated the Festival’s entire Accounting process.
We at the Silicon Valley
Film Festival are planning an exciting 19th season,
and we look forward to "seeing
you at the movies."
The Film Festival is now an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation. The Addison-Penzak Jewish Community Center of Silicon Valley in Los Gatos is a major sponsor of the Film Festival. The Oshman Family Jewish Community Center in Palo Alto is also a major sponsor.