Virtual Screening Details: March Madness

Streaming Timeframe: Thurs. March 18, 6pm - Sun. March 21, 6pm (sales end 2 hrs before; no grace period after 72-hour timeframe expires)
Available for Viewing throughtout the United States
How to Watch? Read our Streaming FAQ Page 

About The Film

This is the inspiring true story of the rise, fall, and redemption of African American professional basketball legend Aulcie Perry, who did not make an NBA team but ended up leading the all-star Israeli Maccabi Tel Aviv team to their first, fabled European Champions Cup title in 1977. Sports Illustrated called the win "the most extraordinary season in [the team's] remarkable history." After that winning season, Perry converted to Judaism (changing his name to Elisha Ben Avraham), married top model Tami Ben-Ami, and became an Israeli citizen. However, at the height of his career and fame, an addiction to painkillers and drugs destroyed the fairy tale. Years later, on an Israeli TV episode of This Is Your Life (1995), Perry was reunited with head coach Sam Luk, who always believed in him; was given a chance to reconnect with his estranged daughter in America; and found his true purpose: coaching aspiring young players.

Director Bio

Dani Menkin has not only represented his films many times at the Seattle Jewish Film Festival but received awards almost every time. Menkin's films include documentaries 39 Pounds of Love (SJFF 2006; Audience Choice Award for Best Documentary); Dolphin Boy (SJFF 2012); On the Map (SJFF 2017), and last year for our 25th anniversary we opened with Picture of His Life and Menkin was awarded both our REEL Difference Award, recognizing filmmakers who focus on social issues and diversity, as well as our new Golden Or (Light) Prize, awarded by a jury of filmmaker peers, for Picture of His Life. Watch two recent interviews with Menkin moderated by SJFF Director Pamela Lavitt on our YouTube channel.  Watch >> Menkin 39 Pounds of Love interview (with composer Chris Gubisch and Asaf Shaul) Watch >> Menkin's Picture of His Life interview (with composer Chris Gubisch and film subject, photographer Amos Nachoum)

 Sponsors:

• Carol Schapira and Michael Levin
  

Virtual Screening Details: Culinary Cinema

Streaming Timeframe: Thurs. March 11, 8pm - Sun. March 14, 8pm (sales end 2 hrs before; no grace period after 72-hour timeframe expires)
Available for Viewing in WA, ID, MT
Culinary Cinema: stay tuned for details about our culinary partner, so you can enjoy food during the film
How to Watch? Read our Streaming FAQs Page 

Make it a Culinary-Cinema Special Event! ORDER NOW>> Wolf & Spice is cooking up two (kosher) Mediterranean Movie Night Dinners. Choose pickup location at checkout. Order and learn more on our Culinary Partners Page...

About The Film

Fans of Anthony Bourdain and food shows will enjoy this delicious documentary about what happens when chefs from different regions in Israel come together to cook and learn from one another. Determined to spark social change through food, Dr. Nof Atamna-Ismaeel, the first Muslim Arab to win Israel's Master Chef Television competition, founded the A-sham Arabic Food Festival in Haifa. There, Jewish and Arab chefs are paired and collaborate to transform traditional recipes like kishek (a Syrian yogurt soup) and qatayef (a dessert typically served during Ramadan) into exotic fusion cuisine. The film offers a message of hope, as the chefs discover that there is no room for politics in the kitchen.

REGISTER NOW>> for a FREE Virtual Passover Cooking Demonstration with James Beard Award-winning chef Michael Solomonov on March 16, 5pm PST, co-presented with Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle, sponsors for our Culinary Cinema festival film. Learn more...

Director Bio

Beth Elise Hawk is a producer and director, known for THE AU PAIR and EYE CANDY (2015). BREAKING BREAD is her feature directorial debut. View on IMDB.

Sponsors:

• Glazer's Camera
• Marilyn and Wayne Weissman
• Community Partner: StandWithUs Northwest
  

Virtual Screening Details:

Streaming Timeframe: Wed. March 10, 7pm - Sat. March 13, 7pm (sales end 2 hrs before; no grace period after 72-hour timeframe expires)
Available for Viewing throughout the United States
Zoom Program: Thurs. March 11, 7 pm with Director Becky Tahel (link emailed 1 hour before)
How to Watch? Read our Streaming FAQ Page | How to Join the Zoom? Details to come

About The Film

In October 2015, director Becky Tahel, a Jewish millennial working in Hollywood, found herself grappling with her sister's recent engagement to a non-Jew. Despite her belief in the modern ideal of love and following your heart, she felt judgmental and confused by their intermarriage, and discovered that many of her friends and colleagues shared her difficulty synthesizing family loyalty with her cultural values. AMERICAN BIRTHRIGHT grew out of Tahel's conversational journey with family, friends, and faith leaders about love, faith, marriage, religion, and inclusiveness, and sprouts into a full-blown dialogue of self-discovery. Returning to Israel, where she was born, Tahel must first ask herself big questions about love, longing, and Jewish learning to understand the pain of making tough choices and find joy in appreciating our differences.

Director Bio

Becky Tahel was born in Haifa, Israel and raised in Philadelphia. She graduated from Temple University with a degree in Communications & Theater. She lives in Los Angeles where she runs Go Tahel Productions. American Birthright is her flagship film.

 Sponsors:

• Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle
  

Virtual Screening Details: Sephardic/Mizrachi Spotlight

Streaming Timeframe: Sun. March 7, 2pm - Wed. March 10, 2pm (sales end 2 hrs before; no grace period after 72-hour timeframe expires)
Available for Viewing in United States only
Zoom Conversation: Tues. March 9, 6:30pm with Director Michelle Paymar and Brendan G. Goldman, Hazel D. Cole Fellow at UW Stroum Center for Jewish Studies (link emailed 1 hour before)
How to Watch? Read our Streaming FAQs

About The Film

In 1896, Talmudic scholar Solomon Schechter entered the sacred storeroom of an ancient synagogue in Cairo, known as the Geniza. There, he found a vast treasure trove of cast-off documents and paper scraps hidden for centuries that revolutionized our understanding of Jewish history. Suddenly, historians gained insight into thousands of years of vibrant Jewish life in the heart of the Islamic world. From sacred manuscripts to everyday personal correspondence with Muslim and Christian neighbors to young children practicing the Hebrew alphabet, the Cairo Geniza contains the largest compendium of Jewish artifacts ever found.

But after their discovery, the documents were dispersed among 70 different libraries and collections worldwide. Today, thanks to an unprecedented international effort, the riches of these archives have been digitally reunited, from Cairo to "the cloud," where they are freely accessible online to everyone everywhere.

This illuminating and well-researched documentary tells the story of the world's most extraordinary collection of ancient Jewish relics and their astounding odyssey into the modern world.

A note from filmmaker Michelle Paymar: "The film was very well-attended at the New York Sephardi Film Festival and the Sephardic Film Festival of Montreal and features "Sephardic" Jews from the areas around the Mediterranean, including Portugal, Spain, the Middle East, and Northern Africa. [...] There are documents in Ladino (and many other languages!) in the Geniza, but the Geniza people mostly spoke Arabic and wrote Judeo-Arabic, Arabic written with Hebrew letters."

Guest Bios

Director Michelle Paymar received a Master of Fine Arts in Film Directing from the American Film Institute and graduated Phi Beta Kappa from UC Berkeley. Paymar is a member of the International Documentary Association and Women in Film. Her production company makes independent documentaries and promotional films for nonprofits and NGO's. Clients include Amnesty International (Canada) Alzheimer's Services of the East Bay (California) and Ayubowan Women's Project (Sri Lanka). Earlier films include her pioneering AIDS documentary, FOR OUR LIVES, and SIPPIE, a documentary about classic blues artist Sippie Wallace (Co-Directed with Roberta Grossman).

Guest Speaker Brendan G. Goldman is the Hazel D. Cole Postdoctoral Fellow in Jewish Studies at the University of Washington. He is a historian of the Jewish communities of the medieval Islamic world and a specialist in the documents of the Cairo Geniza. Brendan's first book, Camps of the Uncircumcised: The Cairo Geniza and Jewish Life in the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem, is forthcoming in 2021. His second book project examines the prison system in medieval Egypt through Jewish documents.

 Sponsors:

• SAMIS Foundation
• Maureen and Joel Benoliel
• Celeste and David Rind
• Community Partners:
  • Congregation Ezra Bessaroth
  • Seattle Sephardic Network
  • Stroum Center for Jewish Studies at the University of Washington

Virtual Screening Details: Brunch Film

Streaming Timeframe: Sun. March 7, 10am - Wed. March 10, 10am (sales end 2 hrs before; no grace period after 72-hour timeframe expires)
Available for Viewing: throughout the US
How to Watch? Read our Streaming FAQ Page

Make it a Special Event! ORDER "BRUNCH KITS" NOW >> from Zylberschtein's. Free drive-by pickup at SJCC on Sun. March 7, 9-10am; or choose other pickup/delivery options at checkout. Order and learn more on our Culinary Partners Page...

About The Film

Almost half the players on the Israeli national soccer team are Muslim, including the captain. While many fans are supportive of the team's diversity and are hopeful that its new roster will lead to unprecedented victory, others are unhappy that it is no longer predominantly Jewish and bristle at the discord and controversies often stoked by prejudice and the media. The loyalty of these players is questioned by all sides even as they try to guide their team through their biggest international tournament. They speak openly about the discrimination and difficulties they've encountered along the way, as well as their close, positive, and cooperative friendships with Jewish teammates. Sports enthusiasts will enjoy tremendous game footage and find this an invigorating portrait of the Israeli national team's common goals: inclusion and a better standing in the league.

Director Bio

 Sponsors:

• Community Partner: URJ Camp Kalsman

Virtual Screening Details:

Streaming Timeframe: Mon. March 15, 7pm - Thurs. March 18, 7pm (sales end 2 hrs before; no grace period after 72-hour timeframe expires)
Available for Viewing in United States only
How to Watch? Read our Streaming FAQ Page

About The Film

Neta Elkayam and Amit Haï Cohen create music that evokes both their Israeli identities and their Judeo-Moroccan heritage. They perform traditional Moroccan music—the kind their grandmothers used to sing—and yearn to reconnect to their foreign roots, Arabic-speaking homes, and family traditions. Through a musical tour of Morocco, the couple attempt to bridge the dissonance of their dual identities, to heal their parents' wounds of exile, and to explore their grandparents' homeland. They meet musicians, government officials, and former neighbors, who guide them through the remote reaches of the country as they wonder what it would take to mend their fragmented identities. With a rich soundtrack of traditional songs, IN YOUR EYES, I SEE MY COUNTRY tells the story of Moroccan Jewry, of a time when Jews and Muslims lived together, and of what was lost and what lives on. Nominated for the Beyond the Screen Award at Docaviv International Documentary Film Festival.

Director Bio

Kamal Hachkar is a French/Moroccan filmmaker and historian. Born in Tinghir, Morocco and raised in France, Hachkar says "the only thing that I was sure of is that I came from elsewhere". While he would return to Tinghir every summer with his family, it would be years before he discovered that the town once had a thriving Jewish community. Previous films include TINGHIR-JERUSALEM: ECHOES FROM THE MELLAH (2014).

 Sponsors:

• Michele and Stan ROsen
  

Virtual Screening Details: 65+ Half-Price Matinee ($7.50 for age 65+)

Streaming Timeframe: Sun. March 14, noon - Wed. March 17, noon (sales end 2 hrs before; no grace period after 72-hour timeframe expires)
Available for Viewing throughout the United States
How to Watch? Read our Streaming FAQ Page

Make it a Special Event! ORDER NOW >> from Rubinstein Bagels: choose from a menu bagel brunch or sandwich kit options. Free drive-by pickup at SJCC on Sun. March 14, 10-11am; or choose other pickup/delivery options. Order and learn more on our Culinary Partners Page...

About The Film

An all-star cast tells the inside story of the Broadway theater scene and how (before the pandemic, of course) it came back from the brink thanks to innovative work, attention to diversity and inclusion, and a sometimes-uneasy balance between art and commerce. Legends of the stage and screen—including Helen Mirren, Christine Baranski, August Wilson, James Corden, Alec Baldwin, John Lithgow, Viola Davis, Hugh Jackman, and Ian McKellen—take us behind the scenes of Broadway's most groundbreaking and beloved shows, from A Chorus Line to Hamilton.

Iconic performances by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Patti LuPone, Bernadette Peters, James Earl Jones, and Mandy Patinkin lead the way on a hurly-burly ride through Times Square—the revived Main Street of Broadway show business.

Director Bio

Oren Jacoby is a producer and director, known for CONSTANTINE'S SWORD (2007), SHADOWMAN(2017), and SISTER ROSE'S PASSION (2004) which won Best Documentary Short at the 2004 Tribeca Film Festival and was nominated for a 2005 Academy Award®.

 Sponsors:

• TBD
• Community Partners:

Virtual Screening Details: Local Connections

Streaming Timeframe: Mon. March 8, 7pm - Thurs. March 11, 7pm (sales end 2 hrs before; no grace period after 72-hour timeframe expires)
Available for Viewing in WA, OR, CA, MT, ID
Zoom Conversation: Wed. March 10, 7:30pm with Joe Schocken and Barbara Lahav, who will share stories about their uncle Salman Schocken with Director Noemi Schory (link emailed 1 hour before)
How to Watch? Read our Streaming FAQ Page | How to Join the Zoom? Details to come

About The Film

Before WWII, Salman Schocken was known as the king of department stores in Germany, owning 22 locations and employing 6,000 people. But the businessman and philanthropist was also a man of letters: he owned a unique collection of 60,000 rare books in German and Hebrew, and in 1931 founded a modern publishing house committed to publishing Judaica and Jewish authors such as Franz Kafka, Martin Buber, and Elie Wiesel. A lifelong supporter of the Nobel laureate S.Y. Agnon, a central figure of modern Hebrew fiction, Schocken also bought the Haaretz newspaper and standardized Hebrew font type. Ahead of his time, Schocken was a maverick modernist in love with tradition. His secular humanist worldview embraced the belief that democracy meant cultural access and aesthetics for all. In that vein, the filmmakers and editors have done an incredible job aesthetically, transitioning from black-and-white footage with narration to colorful scenes from the present day, and they use animation to fill up the empty Schocken stores and structures once inhabited by splendid objects and people.

Guest Bios

	Director Noemi Schory has produced and edited more than 100 documentaries including A FILM UNFINISHED (SJFF 2014), THE INNER TOUR, SOS-ISRAEL'S GENERAL, and the historic films of Yad Vashem museum and directed among others THE STATE OF ISRAEL VS. JOHN IVAN DEMJANUK, and TRANSPORT 222.
	Special Guest: Barbara Lahav grew up in Mount Baker and Seward Park and moved to Israel the summer after graduating from Franklin High School. She attended The Hebrew University and Bezalel Academy of Art and Design. While living in Israel, Barbara worked professionally at the Israel Museum in the Exhibit Design Department. Following this position Barbara worked for the Schocken Family, including local Managing Editor of Kol Ha'Ir, the Ha'aretz affiliated Jerusalem weekly and representing Schocken Publishing at the annual book fair in Jerusalem and distribution of the Schocken English publications. Barbara moved back to Seattle in 1986 with husband Eli, another Bezalel alum and sons, Ben and Adam. In Seattle she worked for the local Jewish newspaper, The Transcript, at the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle and worked as the Program Director of Herzl-Ner Tamid Conservative Congregation. Before retiring Barbara served as the Pacific Northwest Finance Director for J Street.
	Special Guest: Joseph L. Schocken is founder and Chairman of Broadmark Realty Capital (BRMK, NYSE) and President of Tranceka Capital LLC. He was an Obama appointee to the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship and has testified on capital formation before committees at both the U.S. House and Senate. Mr. Schocken is recognized as one of the driving forces behind the 2011 JOBS Act and initiated the Protecting Religiously Affiliated Institutions Act of 2017 to combat anti-Semitism. He is the local AIPAC Chair, serves on the AIPAC National Council, the DNC National Finance Committee, and previously on the Seattle Affordable Middle Income Housing Council.

 Sponsors:

• The Schocken Family | Barbara and Eli Lahav, Alan and Jane Schocken, Judy and Joe Schocken, Joy and Chai Mann
• Nancy and Paul Etsekson
• Rosanne Fleischmann Lapan
• Community Partners:
  • Goethe Pop Up Seattle
  • Herzl-ner Tamid Conservative Congregation
  • Washington State Jewish Historical Society

Virtual Screening Details:

Streaming Period: Tues. March 16, 7pm - Fri. March 19, 7pm (sales end 2 hrs before; no grace period after 72-hour window expires).
Available for Viewing throughout the United States
Zoom Conversation: Wed. March 17, 6:30pm with Director Jesse Dylan and Producer Priscilla Cohen (link emailed 1 hour before)
How to Watch? Read our Streaming FAQ Page 

About The Film

Billionaire activist, philanthropist, and financier George Soros is one of the most influential and controversial figures of our time. Famous for betting against the Bank of England in 1992 and making a billion dollars in one day, he is maligned by ideologues on both the left and the right for daring to tackle the world's problems and putting his money behind his fight—from free elections and freedom of the press to civil rights for minorities.

As biographical documentaries goes, the film isn't an objective portrait—but also doesn't aspire to be. Using his unprecedented access to the man and his inner circle, director Jesse Dylan, follows Soros across the globe and pulls back the curtain on his personal history, private wealth, and public activism to pose the question: Is Soros the lightening rod misunderstood? Revealed is a complicated maverick whose experience as a Hungarian Jew during the Holocaust gave rise to a lifelong crusade against authoritarianism and hate: from fighting apartheid in South Africa to aiding democratizing forces in the Soviet Union and, lately, helping COVID-19 relief efforts.

An official selection of the 2019 Telluride Film Festival.

Special Guests

Director Jesse Dylan is a prolific director, immersive storyteller, and visionary problem-solver. Jesse has dedicated his career to telling the stories of some of the world's most innovative individuals and organizations including Barack Obama's YES WE CAN video, The Clinton Global initiative, XPrize Foundation, Stand Up to Cancer, The Columbia School for Journalism, The Getty among others. His mission is to inspire passion, engage, and motivate people to take action. He is the son of singer Bob Dylan.

Producer Priscilla Cohen has created award-winning content that is both socially responsible and visually compelling, bringing an authentic and compassionate voice to each new project. In 2008 she worked alongside filmmaker Jesse Dylan to produce the Emmy-Award winning YES WE CAN video on behalf of then-candidate Barack Obama. Prior to working with Dylan, Cohen was a film executive at several companies including Miramax, Geffen Pictures, and Robert Redford's Wildwood Productions. Some of the films that she worked on include: INTERVIEW WITH A VAMPIRE, A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT, THE CIDER HOUSE RULES, and WITHIN THE WHIRLWHIND, which won the European Time For Peace award. She also served as director of The Performing Arts Program at the Exploratorium in San Francisco and has a background in the performing arts, having worked at several Off-Broadway venue including The National Theater Institute, the Padua Hills Playwrights' Festival, and The Magic Theater.

 Sponsors:

• Ahna Machan and David Calof
  

Virtual Screening Details:

Streaming Timeframe: Thurs. March 11, 6pm - Sun. March 14, 6pm (sales end 2 hrs before; no grace period after 72-hour timeframe expires)
Available for Viewing throughout the United States
Zoom Conversation: Sun. March 14, 4pm with Director Brad Rothschild (link emailed 1 hour before)
How to Watch? Read our Streaming FAQs Page

About The Film

This moving and timely documentary tells the story of Tamar Manasseh, an African American rabbinical student and fearless community leader who is combating gun violence on the South Side of Chicago, holding vigil on a street corner every afternoon. Her magnetic personality and self-assured energy make her and her organization MASK (Mothers Against Senseless Killings) a force to be reckoned with. THEY AIN'T READY FOR ME explores the complex identity and motivations of an extraordinary person who is both Jewish and black, and how these intersecting identities offer a road map for addressing one of America's most urgent crises.

Guest Bio

Director Brad Rothschild is an award winning producer and writer with both a creative and a business background. He received a Masters in International Affairs and a Masters in Business Administration, both from Columbia University. From 1995-1997, he served as the speechwriter and director of communications for the Mission of Israel to the United Nations. Previous films include producer for KINDERBLOCK 66: RETURN TO BUCHENWALD, director for AFRICAN EXODUS, and TREE MAN.

 Sponsors:

• Lawson Sarkowsky Family in honor of frontline workers (thanks to their support, free tickets will be distributed to them for this film - contact boxoffice@sjcc.org if you are a frontline worker and need a ticket to the film)
• Rebecca Ringer and William Cohon
• Community Partners:
  • Congregation Beth Shalom
  • Temple Beth Am | Sisters of Beth Am
• Outreach Partner: Seattle Hadassah