The Jewish Film Festival returns to Bucharest, between 27 and 31 October 2024

At the end of this month, film enthusiasts in the capital will have the opportunity to attend a new edition of the Jewish Film Festival, taking place from October 27-31 at ARCUB – Hanul Gabroveni, Sala Mare. The program features a rich selection of films by renowned Jewish directors, with cinematic productions from Israel, Germany, France, and the United States, alongside musical moments, book launches, exhibitions, and culinary showcases.

A highlight of this edition is a short film competition for students in grades 8-12, initiated to foster knowledge of Jewish heritage and personalities among younger generations.

The central theme of this year’s edition is “The Ages of Identity,” with films chosen to provide audiences with a broad perspective on Jewish culture, values, and traditions.

Admission to screenings and related events is free, subject to availability. Those interested are invited to send a request via email to [email protected].

The official opening of this year’s edition will take place on October 27, from 18.00, with a program that brings together film, visual arts, books and music. The film shown on the opening night is the very film awarded this year with the Prize for intercultural dialogue at the Berlin Brandenburg Jewish Film Festival: Telling Nonie, directed by Paz Schwartz, an Israeli production, from 2023.

On the same evening, the “Sefard Bucharest” exhibition will be opened, which includes 10 stories from the history of Bucharest of the Spanish Jews, in the presence of the authors – Felicia Waldman and Anca Tudorancea -, which can be visited throughout the five days of the festival. Also, the book Halfon saga: a story about the rise and decline of the Sephardic aristocracy in Romania, by Felicia Waldman, recently published by Integral Publishing House, will also be released on the opening night of this year’s edition of the Jewish Film Festival.

The musical moment of the evening will be supported by Ethan Schmeisser (piano) and Oana Berbec (soprano). The closing evening also brings together a rich program: film, music, as well as a moment dedicated to gastronomy: demonstration of Jewish cuisine.

The film of the evening is a film awarded no less than 10 Ophir Awards (the Israeli Oscars or the Israeli Academy Awards for excellence in film and television): Seven Blessings, directed by Ayelet Menahemi, an Israel production, 2023. The musical moment of the evening brings together: Tehila Nini Goldstein (mezzo-soprano), Ethan Schmeisser (piano), Laura Țurlea (violin), Mladen Spasinovici (cello) and Ioana Bălaşa (flute).

FILMS IN THE PROGRAM:

October 27, 6:00 PM: ● Telling Nonie | directed by Paz Schwartz | Israel, 2023
Awarded the Intercultural Dialogue Prize at the Berlin Brandenburg Jewish Film Festival and Best Israeli Documentary at the 2024 Haifa Film Festival.
A former Israeli secret agent meets the daughter of the Egyptian officer whose assassination he took part in, telling a deeply personal story of forgiveness and redemption. Telling Nonie depicts an unexpected relationship between two individuals who could have seen each other as enemies, yet come to a calm and open dialogue, understanding each other’s perspective. With a touch of Jewish humor, the film uniquely addresses the courage of being honest with oneself. The final scene was filmed near Kibbutz Nahal Oz, just weeks before October 7, 2023.

October 28, 6:00 PM: ● Vishniac | directed by Laura Bialis | USA, 2023
Produced by Nancy Spielberg and Roberta Grossman, this film won Best Documentary at the 2024 Berlin Brandenburg Jewish Film Festival.
An excellently documented and delicately crafted film about the complex life of photographer Roman Vishniac, who was hired by the Joint Distribution Committee to document Eastern European shtetls during the interwar period. His images captured the deep spirituality and vitality of Jewish life in Poland, Romania, Czechoslovakia, and Lithuania, remaining the only evidence of a lifestyle destroyed in the Holocaust. The film traces the Vishniac family’s migration from Tsarist Russia to Berlin and then to the U.S., emphasizing the importance of memory and preserving photos and archival material as testimonies of lost histories.

● Paris Boutique | directed by Marco Carmel | Israel-France, 2022
Presented at the Miami and Atlanta Jewish Film Festivals, with 6 nominations for the Israeli Film Academy Awards.
Based on a lively comedy of errors, the film follows the unlikely friendship between Louise and Neta as they try to unravel the mystery of secret correspondence at the Western Wall between an ultra-Orthodox Jewish woman and a Christian man. The plot offers a chance to revisit the Mahane Yehuda market and Jerusalem’s Old City, with real estate deals involving a rabbi, an imam, and a priest that may just contribute to Middle East peace.

October 29, 6:00 PM: ● The Return from the Other Planet | directed by Assaf Lapid | Israel-Germany, 2023
Winner of the Mention for Best Documentary at the 2024 Berlin Brandenburg Jewish Film Festival.
The film follows Yehiel De-Nur, a Holocaust survivor who lived under the pseudonym Ka-tzetnik, writing books about his Auschwitz experience, which he called “the other planet.” His trauma erupted after testifying at Adolf Eichmann’s trial. The documentary explores his personal odyssey and his unconventional approach to coping through supervised LSD therapy.

● Le dernier des juifs (A Good Jewish Boy) | directed by Noe Debre | France, 2024
Opening film of the 2024 Berlin Brandenburg Jewish Film Festival.
Described by Le Monde as “the French film that accidentally anticipated the rise of antisemitism,” this film humorously yet poignantly portrays the daily life of the last Jew in a Parisian suburb, who at 27 still lives with his mother in a world increasingly hostile to Jews. Beneath the surface of a simple coming-of-age comedy lies a deeper reflection on the dangers facing Jews in France, especially after October 7, 2023.

October 30, 6:00 PM: ● Les eaux du Boug | directed by Marc Sagnol | France-Germany, 2020
Presented at the Molodist Kiff (Ukraine) and Artdocsfest (Russia) festivals.
Dedicated to poet Paul Celan, this film reflects a journey through Podolia, traversed by the majestic Bug River, a site of deportations during World War II. Following the path of deportees, Les eaux du Boug reconstructs the itinerary of Celan’s mother from Chernivtsi to Mikhailovka, contrasting the beauty of the landscape with the horrors that unfolded there. Testimonies from survivors, including Philippe Kellmer (Paris), who met Celan’s mother in the camp, bring this history to life.

● Sallah Shabbati | directed by Ephraim Kishon | Israel, 1964
Winner of two Golden Globe Awards and nominated for an Oscar for Best Foreign Film.
Considered one of the best satires of Israeli society and the first Israeli film to achieve international success, the film follows the chaos of Jewish immigration after the establishment of the State of Israel. The hilarious situations in which the protagonist finds himself, some self-created and others the result of fate, highlight the eternal story of relations between Ashkenazi Jews who arrived earlier and Oriental Jews who came after 1948. The film’s soundtrack remains iconic.

October 31, 6:30 PM: ● Seven Blessings | directed by Ayelet Menahemi | Israel, 2023
Winner of 10 Ophir Awards in 2023.
Exploring the customs of Moroccan Jews, particularly the unique practice of giving children to relatives unable to conceive, the film blends humor and drama to delve into the hidden traumas within these families. Set against the backdrop of a wedding between a Moroccan Jewish woman and a French Ashkenazi man, with the traditional seven blessings, Ayelet Menahemi brings elements of her own history and even family members who appear in their real-life roles into the narrative.