2018 Archives

This rich documentary explores the life and art of a uniquely gifted entertainer and his journey for identity through the shifting tides of civil rights and racial progress during 20th-century America. 

    Join us for the Opening Night event with a screening of the film Sammy Davis, Jr.: I've Gotta Be Me and special guests Manny Davis, son of Sammy Davis, Jr., and Obba Babatundé, a Tony Award nominated and Emmy Award winning actor, singer, dancer, director, writer and producer. 

Discussion and reception to follow.

In this riveting historical drama, 10 political activists (including Nelson Mandela and his inner circle of Black and Jewish supporters) face a possible death sentence in this nail-biting political thriller.

What do the most beautiful actress of the 1930s and 40s and the inventor whose concepts were the basis of cell phone and bluetooth technology have in common? They are both Hedy Lamarr, a glamour icon and technological trailblazer.

A hard-boiled reporter investigates the brutal murder of a prostitute, leading him into the dark underworld of 1930s pre-Nazi Hungary, in this stylish and atmospheric thriller.

A defiant Holocaust survivor looks to strike it rich in postwar Frankfurt in this drama tempered with bittersweet humor.

Thomas, a young German, is having an affair with Oren, an Israeli married man. When Oren dies in a car crash in Israel, Thomas travels to Jerusalem seeking answers in this affecting story. 

Winner of 2018 Israeli Academy Awards for Best Film and Best Director.

An open-minded Israeli questions his liberal convictions when a Palestinian laborer he hired is suspected of a crime in this dark comedy.

A writer involved in a drunken-driving accident is sentenced to community service in Beersheba where he works with young delinquents. Together, they break through the boundaries of the rehabilitative framework.

A "Driver" in the ultra-orthodox community takes his daughter on his nightly journey, exposing her to the more questionable members of this pious society in the dark alleys of Tel Aviv.

As Israeli society slips into extremism, an Arab actor and a Jewish journalist search for a place where they can belong. 

Winner of 2018 Israeli Academy Awards for Best Documentary.

SPECIAL GUEST: Director Shlomi Eldar is a documentary film director and journalist who covered the Palestinian Authority for Israel's Channels 1 and 10. He is the recipient of the Sokolov Prize, Israel's most important media award, for his work. 

Discussion and Q & A to follow.

Michael and Dafna are devastated when army officials show up at their home to announce the death of their son Jonathan. Michael spirals into a whirlwind of anger only to experience one of life's unfathomable twists.

Through the eyes of servicemen and women, this film brings to life the profound story of Jews in World War II—as active participants in the fight against Hitler, bigotry, and intolerance.

India-born conductor Zubin Mehta is most identified with the Israel Philharmonic, where he serves as Music Director for Life and the nation's face of cultural excellence. This biography is a tribute to a true believer in the international language of music.

    Join us for Closing Night with a screening of the film Good Thoughts, Good Words, Good Deeds: The Conductor Zubin Mehta and special guests, Bettina Ehrhardt, the director of the film, and Jamie Bernstein, daughter of legendary composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein. Bernstein will discuss her new book Famous Father Girl: A Memoir of Growing Up Bernstein. 

Discussion and reception to follow.

The story of four young German Jews who manage to survive the Third Reich in Berlin by living in plain sight. Taking on false identities and risky activities, they endure through resourcefulness, luck, and the decency of fellow Germans.

From Schubert to Strauss, Bach to Billy Joel, Itzhak Perlman's transcendent violin playing evokes the depth of the human experience. This documentary reminds us why art is vital to life.

Ephraim Kishon was one of Israel's great writers who defined the Israeli essence through his work. The film uses animation to 'bring back to life' Kishon's persona.

An aging tailor leaves his life in Argentina in this bittersweet road movie that exudes a poignant message of the enduring importance of family, friends and honor.

Steve and Chuma are a duo of thugs who collect protection money for a Jerusalem-based crime organization in this hilarious, politically incorrect caper comedy.

What goes on behind one of the world's most superlative intelligence agencies? Those searching the answer to this question may very well find it in this documentary that reveals the secret operations and missions that former Israeli Mossad agents have undergone.

The decades-spanning romance of a French couple is chronicled in this thought-provoking and scathingly funny film.

Once upon a time, Israel and Palestine almost made peace. But, then at the eleventh hour it all collapsed. This intimate story speaks to the current situation in the Middle East.

At the age of 85, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has developed a breathtaking legal legacy while becoming an unexpected pop culture icon. RBG is a revelatory documentary exploring her extraordinary career and personal journey.

The untold story of Iraq told though the eyes of the Jews. We follow the lives of four Jewish families trying to make sense of turbulent times. 

Panel discussion to follow, led by Abraham Sofaer with special guests Jamil Ezra and Aaron Matityahu.

Torn between the teachings of his literature teacher and the expectations of his, workman father, a 17-year-old must decide what sort of man he will become.

A Mossad agent is called back from sick leave to protect a Lebanese informant in this suspense-laden, elegant psychological thriller.

An Egyptian lawyer, a couch-surfing custodian and an Orthodox Jew walk into a comedy club in this documentary that captures the devastating lows and exhilarating highs of their journey. 

    Come meet the producers, the director, Jonathan Miller, and the three aspiring comedians featured in the film: David Finklestein, who risks expulsion from his ultra-Orthodox Jewish community with every performance; Sara Parks, who moved to New York to become a star, but is barely scraping by; and Raafat Toss, a successful lawyer bored with his career and now finally ready to follow his passion. 

Discussion and Q & A with special guests to follow.

A historian leading a debate against Holocaust deniers discovers that his mother carries a false identity in this mystery about a man who is willing to risk everything to discover the truth.

If twins separated at birth isn't crazy enough, imagine triplets. As its self-explanatory title suggests, Three Identical Strangers documents the real experiences that three triplet brothers encounter after meeting each other for the first time ever.

Based on the book of the same name, Who Will Write Our History? tells the story of Emanuel Ringelblum and the Oyneg Shabes Archive, the secret archive he created and led in the Warsaw Ghetto. With 30,000 pages of writing, photographs, posters, and more, it documents not only how the Jews of the ghetto died, but how they lived.