These are the films that played during the 12th Annual Vancouver Jewish Film Festival. They are listed in alphabetical order.
17 Rue St. Fiacre
France, 1999, 24 minutes, video
Director/Producer: Daniel Meyers
This documentary tells the story of Rachel and Leon, two young Jewish siblings who were sheltered by a working class family in the Nazi-occupied town of Compiegne, France during World War II. The children's parents never returned and they were "adopted" into the Catholic family. These two children were the only Jews to survive the entire war in Compiegne, and now live in the United States. The film revolves around the return of Rachel and Leon to Compiegne for their "adopted" mother's 90th birthday party. We see interviews with all the surviving principals in the story, Rachel and Leon visiting the old apartment from which their parents were deported, and a scene at the birthday party. The story is framed in its historical context by narration, archival photographs and family home movie footage. A moving, personal story of courage and memory recommended for children as well as adults.
94 Years and 1 Nursing Home Later
USA, 1999, 41 minutes, video
Directed by Laurel Greenberg
This important documentary begins when filmmaker Laurel Greenberg watches some home movies that her father shot of his mother in a Philadelphia nursing home. "Do you like it here?" Marvin asks his mother, Belle. Her weak smile and feigned enthusiasm seem to satisfy Marvin, yet are disturbing to Laurel who set out to discover her grandmother's true feelings. An immigrant from Russia, Belle Greenberg built her whole life around caring for her family. How did she come to be alone and isolated from this family at the end of her life? Laurel's search for understanding delves into the relationships and changing roles of parents and children.
Aaron Cohen's Debt
Israel, 1999, 96 minutes, video
Hebrew w/ English subtitles
Directed by Amalia Margolin
A cheerful birthday party is interrupted by the arrival of the police. They have come for the honouree himself, Aaron Cohen. Bewildered and annoyed, Aaron is informed that he owes child support. Although to the best of his knowledge, such debt doesn't exist, the police march him off to local jail. Despite his frail health and his daughter's frantic efforts to bail him out, Aaron is forced to spend the night behind bars. Indifferent guards, an over-crowded cell and an infected ulcer thrust Aaron into a Kafkaesque nightmare. Past, present and future blend in an intricate telling of this award-winning drama. Winner, Best Made-for-TV Movie, 1999 Banff Television Festival
After the End of the World
Bulgaria, 1998, 108 minutes, colour, 35mm
Bulgarian with English subtitles
Directed by Ivan Nichev
When Albert ("Berto") Cohen, an Israeli professor of Byzantine history, returns to Bulgaria to present a lecture, he begins a sentimental journey into the past. In the town of his birth, the southern Bulgarian village of Plovdiv, he runs into his first love, Araxi Wartanyan. The film moves between the present and the past as the two of them recall childish pranks and the friendly relations between Bulgarians, Armenians, Turks, Jews, Gypsies and Greeks, which endured until Stalin's purges. Despite the years of separation, they grow closer together until a new threat emerges: ruthless land speculators, who want Cohen's family house and studio and will stop at nothing. One of the best films from Bulgaria in years. Stars leading Bulgarian actor, Stefan Danailov.
Blue and White in Red Square
Israel, 1999, 60 minutes, video
Hebrew and Russian w/ English subtitles
Directed by Elan Frank
On July 15, 1998, 1,000 young musicians representing 11 youth philharmonic orchestras from around the world, gathered in Moscow to form the "Orchestra of the World." Among the performers were the members of the Young Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, many of whom were born in the Soviet Union. For most, the trip represented the first return to their former homeland after years of living in Israel. Director Frank draws us into their stories and insights as they discuss the difficulties of being Jewish in former Soviet Russia, mixed feelings in seeing old friends and homes, and the challenges they faced in making a new life in Israel. Silver Award, Documentary category, Houston International Film festival 2000
Children of Chabannes
USA, 1999, 92 minutes, 16mm
Directed by Lisa Gossels and Dean Wetherell
A tale of courage, resilience and love set during the Second World War, "The Children of Chabannes" tells the story of how the people of Chabannes, a tiny village in unoccupied France, chose action over indifference and saved the lives of 400 Jewish refugee children. Filmmaker Gossels returns to Chabannes with her father and uncle, two of the 400 children who were saved. Through intimate interviews, the filmmakers recreate the joys and fears of daily life in the village. But this oasis of hope is shattered in August of 1942 when the war reached the doorsteps of the château where the children lived. This lyrical and moving film shows the remarkable efforts made by the citizens of Chabannes, who risked their lives and livelihoods to protect these children, simply because they felt it was the right thing to do. Official Web site
Color of Jewish
USA/Israel, 1996, 26 minutes, video
English with Amharic and Hebrew w/subtitles
Directed by Pamela Love
A documentary on the Ethiopian Jews who made the transition from simple mud and dung huts to Israel's westernized culture. The film examines the changes in religious practice and leadership affecting the Ethiopian community in Israel through interviews with Ethiopians and older Israelis. The film reveals problems similar for all recent immigrants: the struggle to maintain one's culture in a new land.
Farewell
Russia, 1992, 27 minutes, 35mm,B&W
Directed by Arkadiy Yakhnis
Russian w/ English subtitles
This short documentary chronicles a 90-year old man's emigration to Israel from his native shtetl in Bessabaria. Yakhnis' beautifully photographed film poetically captures the end of a rich Jewish heritage in Russia. Jurors' Choice Award, 1998 Jewish Video Competition, Judah L. Magnes Museum
Giraffe
Germany, 1998, 107 minutes, 35mm
German w/English subtitles
Directed by Dani Levy
An arson-related fire destroys a Jewish-owned chocolate factory in Germany. Shortly after, an elderly Jewish woman is found dead in the corridor of a New York apartment building. Her son David, a street smart garment trader in Brooklyn, meets Lena Katz, the granddaughter of the factory owner, who also appears to be involved in the mysterious circumstances of his mother's death. In the course of the investigation, a mutual attraction grows, but the suspicions of David's sleazy lawyer Kaminsky threaten to undermine their relationship. "The Giraffe" is a sexy thriller that links events from the past with the present, pitting generations and cultures against each other in its search for the truth. Produced by X-Film Creative Pool, which released the smash-hit "Run Lola Run" last year, and starring Levi and renowned German actress, Maria Schrader, who co-wrote the script.
Inside Out
South Africa, 1998, 104 minutes, 35mm
Directed by Neil Sundstrom
South African comedian Gilda Blacher stars as Hazel Levin, a young Jewish actress from Johannesburg stranded in a small Karoo town when her car breaks down. Recognized from a television commercial, Hazel finds herself invited to direct the town's nativity play! Hazel is in a predicament, she's unemployed, she's broke and worse, must face her Mother's "I told you so" attitude. She must also deal with some openly antagonistic townsfolk - not only because she's Jewish, but also because of her attempts to involve the black community in the production. "Inside Out" is a gentle, romantic tale of love, tolerance, tragedy and triumph that explores, often with hilarious results, the changing face of South Africa.
Jews and Buddhism
USA, 1999, 41 minutes, video
Directed by Bill Chayes
Jews and Buddhism examines the dramatic surge of interest among North American Jews in the spiritual teachings of Buddhism. Jews, who make up 2% of the population, account for around 30% of non-Asian American Buddhists. Jews and Buddhism is the first film to interrogate this phenomenon in depth, explore it in the context of 20th Century Jewish-American life and consider its impact on contemporary Jewish thought and practice. This award winning documentary includes rare footage of the Dalai Lama, spiritual leader of Tibet, as well as David Ben Gurion, Alan Ginsberg and many others. Narrated by Sharon Stone.
LA Mohel
USA, 1999, 30 minutes, video
Directed by David Bezmozgis
This upbeat, often-humorous film presents three busy mohels - Jewish ritual circumcisers - as they practice their ancient profession in modern Los Angeles. One is a young doctor with a flair for show business ("Mohel to the Stars"), one is a nurse midwife with a spiritual bent and the third is an orthodox Rabbi. All three illustrate and explain how this 3700-year-old ritual is an occasion to celebrate and how Jews of various backgrounds express their identity, their faith and their family ties in these early moments of life. 1st Place, Student Category, Judah L. Magnes Video Competition 1999
La Terza Luna (The Third Moon)
Italy/Switzerland, 1997, 85 minutes, 35mm
Italian w/English subtitles
Directed by Matteo Bellinelli
Set in present-day Venice, the film tells the story of young architect, Luca Fabiani, who has come to restore a palazzo near the old Jewish Quarter. There he discovers Elio Sorani, a once famous Jewish writer who has been hiding from the outside world for years, lost in his childhood memories of the Venetian Ghetto during the Second World War. Elio's only contact with reality is Guilia, a mysterious woman to whom Luca is soon attracted. For the director Matteo Bellinelli, "La Terza Luna" is a film about chance and fate, in which dreams alternate with reality, and irony with tenderness."
Life and Times of Hank Greenberg
USA, 1999, 95 minutes, 16mm
Directed by Aviva Kempner
In the 1930s Jewish Mothers would ask their sons: "What kind of day did Hank have?" Hank Greenberg, the Detroit Tigers slugger who came close to breaking Babe Ruth's home run record, was baseball's first Jewish star. Tall (6'4"), handsome and uncommonly good-natured, Greenberg was a secular Jew from the Bronx who became "the baseball Moses," an icon for everyone from Walter Matthau ("I joined the Beverly Hills tennis club to eat lunch with him. I don't even play tennis") to Alan Dershowitz ("I thought he'd become the first Jewish President"). Aviva Kempner's loving tribute is chock full of wonderful archival footage from the '30s and '40s and interviews with a self-effacing Greenberg and many of his Tiger teammates. www.hankgreenbergfilm.org
Making a Killing
UK, 1998, 52 minutes, video
Produced by Anne Webber
A compelling detective story about one family's 50-year quest to recover their missing art collection set against a background of murder, greed and corruption. In 1943 Friedrich and Louise Gutmann, members of a prominent German-Jewish banking family living in Holland, refused to sign over their valuable collection to the Nazis. They were sent to the Theresienstadt concentration camp, interrogated and murdered. Their house was stripped bare. After the war the Gutmanns' children, Lili and Bernard, searched unsuccessfully for the stolen art. In 1994 Bernard's sons took up the mission, joined by art hunter Willi Korte. The story culminates in the discovery of a stolen Degas painting and the controversial legal battle to reclaim it, revealing the complicity of the international art world, dealers, auction houses, curators and museums in the trade and acquisition of Nazi plunder.
Nothing to be Written Here
Canada, 1996, 47 minutes, video
Directed by Wendy Oberlander
Artfully mixing personal narrative, historical fact and striking imagery, "Nothing to be Written Here" traces Oberlander's discovery of her father's wartime experience. As a Jewish teenager, Peter Oberlander was exiled from Austria in 1938, interned in Britain and transferred to Canada in 1940. For years he was confined in prison camps in eastern Canada, one of over 2,000 German and Austrian Jewish refugees regarded as 'dangerous enemy aliens,' and held behind the same barbed wire that imprisoned their persecutors, the Nazi POW's. Oberlander's insightful and very personal film received the First Place Award for Holocaust Biography from the Judah L. Magnes Museum.
Purple Lawns
Israel, 1998, 56 minutes, video
Hebrew w/English subtitles
Directed by Dina Zvi-Riklis
Yael and Shlomit, two secular, free-spirited women, share a flat in Tel Aviv. Their high rent forces them to take in a third roommate, Malka, an enigmatic ultra-orthodox woman. Malka's insistence on living with two secular women touches Yael's heart but arouses Shlomit's suspicions. As Yael is drawn to the mysterious Malka, Shlomit grows increasingly jealous of the relationship that forms between the two and begins to trail Malka. Slowly, with many twists and turns, Malka's secret is revealed. The film tells the story of an intimate bond between women from different worlds.
Rosenzweig's Freedom
Germany, 1998, 90 minutes, 35mm
German w/English subtitles
Directed by Liliane Targownik
Germany, September 1991. A group of skinheads have attacked a hostel occupied by foreign asylum seekers. After the attack, Michael Rosenzweig, who had been at the hostel with his Vietnamese girlfriend, is seen in the vicinity firing a handgun. That same night, a Neo-Nazi leader is found shot dead. Despite not being able to remember the events of the night, Rosenzweig is arrested and charged with murder. His brother, a young, brash lawyer, takes on his defence. The fact that the two are children of Holocaust survivors adds several layers of psychological drama to the case. "Rosenzweig's Freedom" is suspenseful and exciting entertainment, but more importantly, the film takes a critical look at German xenophobia that has plagued that country since reunification. Although the characters are fictitious, the film is based on actual incidents.
Sabbath in Paradise
Germany, 1997, 85 minutes, colour and black & white, 16mm
English
Directed by Claudia Heuermann
Klezmer, traditional European Jewish music, is currently enjoying great popularity, but what is Klezmer? What is actually happening today in the contemporary Jewish music scene? Intertwined with a reading of the Yiddish folktale, "Sabbath in Paradise", are performances and interviews with musicians representing the full range of modern Klezmer, from radical John Zorn to traditionalist Andy Statman. They attempt to define and explain Jewish music, and in so doing reveal aspects of their own Jewish identities and personal relationships with community and Torah. The film also features New York musicians Michael Alpert, David Krakauer, Anthony Coleman, Marc Ribot, Roy Nathanson, Harvey Pekar and Frank London.
Too Early to be Quiet, Too Late to Sing
Israel, 1995, 53 minutes, video
Yiddish and Hebrew w/English subtitles
Directed by Chava Alberstein
A flourishing Yiddish culture of poetry, music, drama and literature came to an abrupt end with the Holocaust. A small core of survivors, spread out among communities of the United States, Canada, Argentina and Israel, continued to create in Yiddish after the Second World War. Now, 50 years later, only a few Yiddish poets remain alive, most of them in Israel. Chava Alberstein, "the First Lady of Israeli Song," set out to interview these last writers of Yiddish poetry to hear their poems and stories. Along the way, she sings a superb collection of Yiddish folk songs. With 45 albums to her name, Alberstein is probably the only singer in the world whose repertoire of Yiddish songs is of such authenticity.
Treyf
USA, 1998, 55 minutes, video
Directed by Alisa Lebow and Cynthia Madansky
Treyf - unkosher in Yiddish - is an unorthodox documentary by and about two Jewish lesbians who met and fell in love at a Passover seder. With personal narration, real and imagined educational films, and haunting imagery the filmmakers examine the Jewish identity of their upbringings and its impact on their lives. A reflection on culture, community and individual desire, this witty film follows the filmmakers as they discover what they thought was most profoundly Treyf about their worldviews still has roots in Jewish history. Chicago Film Festival, Certificate of Merit; NY Lesbian and Gay Film Festival, Special Jury Prize
Uncle Chatzkel
Australia, 1999, 52 minutes, video
Directed by Rod Freeman
Chatzkel Lemchen has lived through the Russian revolution, two world wars, a communist regime and the transition of Lithuania from Soviet Republic to an independent state. During the Holocaust, the Nazis and their Lithuanian supporters killed Chatzkel's parents and children. He and his wife were sent to separate concentration camps in Germany. Chatzkel survived through his skills as a linguist and lexicographer, eventually receiving his country's highest honours for his work in preserving the Lithuanian language. One of seven siblings, Chatzkel was the only member of his family to remain in Lithuania. His relatives half a world away in Australia were barely even aware of him. When they finally do meet, it is a deeply moving experience that raises questions about identity, connection and rediscovering family roots.
Viehjud Levi (Jew-Boy Levi)
Germany, 1999, 97 minutes, 35mm
German w/English subtitles
Directed by Didi Danquart
Based on the acclaimed play by German writer Thomas Strittmatter, Veihjud Levi is the story of a friendly Jewish cattle merchant in Germany's Black Forest. Vieuhjud is an old, derogatory word for a Jew in the cattle trade. It's 1935 and an ambitious railroad engineer and his manipulative mistress have arrived from Berlin. Spreading lies and threats, they soon have the townspeople turning against each other, especially against Levi, who just returned to the town with intentions to romance Lisbeth, the Catholic daughter of one of his clients. The familiar old traditions begin to collapse, swastikas appear at the tavern and life in the town will never be the same. A compelling and disturbing look at events that preceded the Holocaust; director Danquart deftly avoids simple clichés in his depiction of the complex beginnings of Germany's slide into moral darkness. Stars German actress, Eva Mattes, of Fassbinder fame, as Frau Horger.
Village of Idiots
Canada, 1999, 12 minutes, 35mm
Directed by Eugene Federenko and Rose Newlove
Weary of daily life in his native village of Chelm, Shmendrik sets out on a quest for knowledge that brings him to a new Chelm, a place remarkably like the old Chelm, down to the chickens' reminiscent clucks. Based on the Yiddish folk tale and adapted by Vancouverite John Lazarus, the film offers an extremely funny take on our tendency to romanticize what we don't have.
Voyages
France, 1999, 124 minutes, 35mm
French, Yiddish, Hebrew w/English subtitles
Directed by Emmanuel Finkiel
"Voyages" is a story of three women told in three parts. Rivka is a 65-year-old French Holocaust survivor, living in Israel. She and her husband have joined a tour group from Warsaw to Auschwitz. Regine, living alone in Paris, receives an unexpected call from an elderly Russian man claiming to be her long-lost father. When they meet, he barely recognizes her. Is he really her father? Vera, an 85-year-old Russian woman who has recently immigrated to Israel, is looking for a cousin she has not seen in years. She's surprised that there are Jews in Israel who do not speak Yiddish, but is able to find her way using Russian and French. These seemingly unrelated stories are told linearly, but connect to the past, and each other. A moving, yet never melodramatic, exploration of the displacement of lives that resulted from the Holocaust; the film gracefully reveals characters and story as it moves between three countries on two continents. Prix de la Jeunesse, Cannes Film Festival 1999; Best First Film, César Awards (French Academy Awards) 1999
Wedding in Galilee
Belgium/West Germany, 1987, 116 minutes
Arabic and Hebrew w/ English subtitles
Directed by Michel Khleifi
The elder of a Palestinian village in Israel is given permission to hold a traditional wedding for his son on the condition that the Israeli military governor and his staff be guests of honour at the ceremony.
Women of the Wall
USA, 1999, 31 minutes, 16mm
Directed by Faye Lederman
Since 1989, a group of Jewish immigrant women, both Orthodox and Reform, have fought against Orthodox restrictions prohibiting them from leading prayer, wearing prayer shawls and head coverings and reading from the Torah at the Kotel ("Western Wall"). Through interviews with the women in the group and Israeli religious and political leaders, we are offered insight into the diverse religious interpretations of Judaism in Israel.
Yana's Friends
Israel, 1999, 90 minutes, 35mm
Hebrew and Russian w/English subtitles
Directed by Arik Kaplun
Yana is young, beautiful and pregnant and has just been abandoned by her husband in the midst of the Gulf War. Having recently arrived in Israel from Russia, she barely speaks Hebrew and must struggle with cultural differences and no income. She shares a flat in Tel Aviv with Eli, a 20-something Israeli wedding photographer with a passion for casual sex. Eli is also a professional voyeur who cannot resist capturing Yana on video. When the threat from Sadam Hussain's poison gas missiles forces them both into the same sealed bedroom, sparks fly and love blossoms. Winner of 10 Israeli Academy Awards including Best Picture, 1999; Grand Prix, Karlovy Vary International Film Festival 1999; Wolgin Award & Honourable Mention, Jerusalem Film Festival 1999