The Testament (2017)

  • 2018 Seattle Jewish Film Festival Salutes Israel’s 70th Birthday, Announces Lineup. Opens with Mob Caper MAKTUB

    [caption id="attachment_27182" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]Maktub Maktub[/caption] Under the theme “isREEL Life,” this year’s 2018 Seattle Jewish Film Festival is particularly special, as the Festival salutes Israel’s 70th birthday.  The 23rd edition of the Seattle Jewish Film Festival will run from March 8 to March 18 at venues around Seattle and on Mercer Island with a special Eastside Expansion on April 14 to April 15 at Regal’s Cinebarre Issaquah 8, showcasing four additional films. This festival is an important part of Seattle’s cultural mosaic, offering a diverse spectrum of films that celebrate Jewish and Israeli life, culture, history, and cinema. Oded Raz, Isreaeli director, will feature the funny and touching mob caper Maktub on Seattle’s Opening Night, and SJFF’s new Eastside Opening Night kicks off with the illuminating and entertaining documentary Shalom Bollywood, about Indian-Jewish screen legends. The final Eastside film will be Across the Waters: a gripping story of survival and rescue.

    SJFF 2018 SCREENINGS AND PROGRAMS

    Opening Night Film Maktub | Director: Oded Raz | Comedy/Drama | Israel Two Jerusalem mob enforcers turn into unlikely secret angels after surviving a bombing at a resaurant they were shaking down. They fulfill writers’ wishes in purloined notes from the Western Wall while evading their suspicious boss in this funny and touching caper. Land of Milk and Funny | Director: Avi Liberman | Documentary | USA/Israel LA funnyman Avi Liberman takes fellow stand-up comedians on tours of Israel, capturing their keen and comical insights onstage and off. Guest (and stand-up performer): Comedian Dwight Slade. Trezoros: The Jews of Kastoria | Directors: Lawrence Russo & Larry Confino | Documentary | Greece A coastal city renowned for its idyllic beauty, Kastoria was once home to a harmonious and vibrant population of Greek Jews and Christians. Never-before-seen archival footage and interviews stitch together a compelling portrait of this unique and dynamic Jewish community. Guests: Director Lawrence Russo and Professor Devin Naar, UW Sephardic Studies. Keep the Change | Director: Rachel Israel | Romantic Comedy | USA Winner of Best Narrative Feature at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival, this romantic comedy about people with autism navigating the difficulties of a relationship is charming, authentic and is “as funny as it is sweet” (Variety). Preceded by short film: The Gravedigger’s Daughter. Recommended for ages 15+; $5 tickets for TeenTix Members. Itzhak | Director: Alison Chernick | Documentary | USA Widely considered one of the world’s greatest living violinists, Itzhak Perlman’s mastery of the violin catapulted a child with polio from Tel Aviv and the son of Polish survivors onto the world’s most prominent stages. The Cakemaker | Director: Ophir Raul Graizer | Drama | Gemany/Israel Devastated by the sudden death of his Israeli boyfriend, shy Berlin baker Thomas journeys to Jerusalem, where he secretly infiltrates the lives of his lover’s widow and son, and helps revive her fledgling café with his tantalizing German confections. How long can he keep this secret as the pair becomes deeply enmeshed? Guest: Sara Michelle Fetters, Lead Film Critic for Seattle Gay News. Mandala Beats | Director: Rebekah Reiko | Documentary | Canada/India/Israel Known as the Jimi Hendrix of Israeli, musician Yossi Fine has collaborated with artists across the globe including Lou Reed, David Bowie, and Madonna. The son of a European Jew and a black Parisian mom, he learns that his grandfather was Indian, and departs on an “instrumental” journey of rediscovery. Guest: Director Rebekah Reiko. Longing | Director: Savi Gabizon | Drama | Israel Director Savi Gabizon (Nina’s Tragedies, SJFF 2005) muses on aging and second chances in this tale of a father haunted by a son he never knew existed. Preceded by short film: Holes. Praise the Lard | Director: Chen Shelach | Documentary | Israel The untold story of the pork industry in Israel, from Zionist movement and kibbutz pig farms to current identity struggles, freedoms, and new immigrant penchants, in spite of fierce resistance from religious Jews. Preceded by short  film: Our Brothers. An Act of Defiance | Director: Jean van de Velde | Drama | South Africa Ten men in Nelson Mandela’s inner circle—some black, some Jewish—are arrested for conspiring to commit sabotage against the South African apartheid state. Their courageous lawyer risks career and freedom to defend them and conceal his own sedition in this nail-biting political thriller and spectacular courtroom drama. 1945 | Director: Ferenc Török | Drama | Hungary In the immediate aftermath of WWII, the arrival of an elderly Orthodox Jew and his son in a small Hungarian town triggers the townsfolk’s collective fear and guilt. Shelter | Director: Eran Riklis | Drama/Thriller | Germany/Israel/France In this suspenseful, neo-noir drama and psychological thriller, Mossad agent Naomi is sent to protect Mona, a Lebanese collaborator, in a German safe house. Their uneasy relationship develops into an unexpected bond, while threat levels outside rise. Sammy Davis Jr.: I’ve Gotta Be Me | Director: Sam Pollard | Documentary | USA A toe-tapping, star-studded homage to the immensely-talented Black-Jewish entertainer and Rat Pack legend who navigated the shifting tides of civil rights and racial progress in mid-20th century America. The Testament | Director: Amichai Greenberg | Drama/Thriller | Austria/Israel Yoel, a meticulous historian leading a significant debate against Holocaust deniers, discovers that his mother carries a false identity. Is he willing to risk everything to discover the truth? Guest: Actor Ori Pfeffer. Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story | Director: Alexandra Dean | Documentary | USA Alert, hipsters: Hedy Lamarr is the new Nikolai Tesla. Watch this film about her stranger-than-fiction life and amazing inventions so you can be into her before everyone else catches on. $5 tickets for Seniors 65+. Refreshments will be served at this screening. The History of Love | Director: Radu Mihaileanu | Drama | France/Belgium/Canada/Romania Two lives intersect in New York City in this masterful adaptation of Nicole Krauss’s bestselling novel starring Elliot Gould and Sir Derek Jacobi. An Israeli Love Story | Director: Dan Wolman | Drama | Israel Aspiring young actress Margalit falls for dashing fighter Eli in pre-independence Palestine, setting the stage for a true love story that mixes idealism, romance, sacrifice, and tragedy during a turbulent and momentous period. A cash bar at The J Cafe accompanies this screening. Vitch | Director: Sigal Bujman | Documentary | USA/Australia/France/Germany/Israel/Poland This documentary illuminates the moral conundrum of Eddie Vitch, a Polish Jewish caricaturist, mime and comedian, who stayed alive by entertaining Nazi elite and Gestapo officers. The film traces his daughter’s efforts to uncover the truth about his activities and motives. Guests: Director Sigal Bujman and Director of Photography Marc Pingry; Producers Yaffa and Paul Maritz. A special Event in the J Café accompanies this film, featuring a Brown Derby Eddie Vitch caricature exhibit and cake reception Cuba’s Forgotten Jewels | Directors: Robin Truesdale and Judy Kreith | Documentary | USA For a few short years in the 1940s, Jewish refugees from war-torn Europe turned the tropical island of Cuba into a global diamond center. This little-known, colorful, and uplifting story is set to an original soundtrack of Jewish melodies and pulsating Cuban music, featuring Seattle’s own Clave Gringa who will perform after the screening. Guests: Directors Robin Truesdale and Judy Kreith; Ann Reynolds, and Clave Gringa Latin jazz band. There will also be a a performance by Seattle’s Clave Gringa, who is featured on the film’s soundtrack. Closing Night Centerpiece Tiffany Shlain’s “Spoken Cinema | Director Tiffany Shlain | Documentary Shorts Program | USA This year’s SJFF REEL Difference Award recipient is Emmy-nominated filmmaker, author, public speaker, and internet pioneer, Tiffany Shlain, whose Let it Ripple film studio makes impactful films and creates global social initiatives (Character Day, 50/50 Day) that explore the intersection of technology, (Jewish) identity, and connection that shape our lives. She will take us on an exhilarating tour of her acclaimed films and present a new, interactive, documentary art form she calls “Spoken Cinema”—a live narration of her film as the soundtrack plays in the background. Guest: Filmmaker and SJFF 2018 REEL Difference Award recipient Tiffany Shlain. Eastside Opening Night Shalom Bollywood | Director: Danny Ben-Moshe | Documentary | Australia Who knew that Jews—specifically Jewish women—dominated Bollywood for the first half of its 100-year history? This entertaining documentary, featuring rich and rare archival clips, profiles six legends of the Indian silver screen who made Bollywood what it is today: the largest and one of the most progressive, cutting-edge film industries in the world. This screening will include free popcorn and a beverage for ticket holders. Ben-Gurion, Epilogue | Director: Yariv Mozer | Documentary | Israel Two filmmakers scoured the globe for the last David Ben-Gurion interview, before finding it in the Israeli desert—a rivetingly intimate documentary that captures both the vision and humility of Israel’s founding father. Your Honor | Director: Roni Ninio | TV Drama/Thriller (4 episodes) | Israel Binge watch Israel’s new, award-winning Breaking Bad-esque television drama, Your Honor, about a rising-star judge and his well-meaning family who become ensnared in Israel’s underworld. (Four episodes shown, with the rest of season one coming at a later date.) Across the Waters | Director: Nicolo Donato | Drama | Denmark Unsure of whom they can trust, a Jewish musician and his family make a frantic escape from Nazi-occupied Denmark. A gripping story of survival and rescue.

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  • 28th Stockholm International Film Festival Announces Lineup, THE SHAPE OF WATER, DOWNSIZING and More

    [caption id="attachment_25167" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]The Shape Of Water Sally Hawkins and Octavia Spencer in the film THE SHAPE OF WATER.[/caption] 150 films from 60 different countries have been selected to be screened at the 28th Stockholm International Film Festival that takes place from the November 8th to the 19th. A third of the films in this year’s festival program are directed by first-time filmmakers, the festival is also joined by legends such as this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award-winner Vanessa Redgrave. After a long and successful Hollywood-career 80 year old Vanessa Redgrave makes her debut as a director with the documentary Sea Sorrow. The film focuses on the global refugee crisis and is a part of this years Spotlight – Change. This years Visionary Award recipient is the director Pablo Larraín. Larraín is the director behind the Academy Award-nominated Jackie (2016); he is now attending the Stockholm Film festival with his latest film Neruda. The premiere movie of this year’s film festival is the critically acclaimed film The Shape Of Water by the director behind the Academy Award-winning Pan’s Labyrinth Guillermo del Toro. Del Toro also won the Gold Lion at the Venice Film Festival earlier this year. A selection of other films that will be screened are: Thelma by Joachim Trier, Call Me By Your Name by Luca Guadagnino, The Party by Sally Porter, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri by Martin McDonagh and last but not least Downsizing by Alexander Payne.

    Stockholm International Film Festival – Program 2017

    Stockholm XXVIII Competition

    A Ciambra by Jonas Carpignano (Italy, France, USA, Germany, 120 min) Ava by Léa Mysius (France, 106 min) Beach Rats by Eliza Hittman Co (USA, 95 min) Beast by Michael Pearce (Great Britain, 107 min) Falling by Marina Stepanska (Ukraine, 105 min) Gabriel And The Mountain by Fellipe Gamarano Barbosa (Brazil, France, 127min) God’s Own Country by Francis Lee (Great Britain, 104 min) I Am Not A Witch by Rungano Nyoni (Great Britain, France, 92 min) Insyriated by Philippe Van Leeuw (Belgium, France, Liban, 85 min) Jeune Femme by Léonor Serraille (France, 97 min) King Of Peking by Sam Voutas (USA, Australia, China, 88 min) La familia by Gustavo Rondón Córdova (Venezuela, Chili, Norway, 82 min) Los Perros by Marcela Said (Chile, France, 94 min) No Date, No Signature by Vahid Jalilvand (Iran, 100 min) One Thousand Ropes by Tusi Tamasese (New Zealand, 98 min) The Rider by Chloé Zhao (USA, 105 min) Son of Sofia by Elina Psikou (Bulgaria, France, Greece, 105 min) Where The Shadows Fall by Valentina Pedicini (Italy, 95 min)

    Stockholm XXVIII Documentary Competition

    A Gray State by Erik Nelson (USA, 93 min) Copwatch by Camilla Hall (USA, 99 min) For Ahkeem by Jeremy S. Levine and Landon Van Soest (USA, 89 min) The Force by Peter Nicks (USA, 93 min) Lots of Kids, A Monkey, And A Castle by Gustavo Salmerón (Spain, 90 min) The New Radical by Adam Bhala Lough (USA, 120 min) Step by Amanda Lipitz (USA, 83 min) Tarzan’s Testicles by Alexandru Solomon (Romania, France, 107 min) This is Congo by Daniel McCabe (Democratic Republic of Congo, USA, Canada, 91 min) This Is Everything: Gigi Gorgeous by Barbara Kopple (USA, 91 min) True Conviction by Jamie Meltzer (USA, 84 min) The Venerable W by Barbet Schroeder (France, Switzerland, 100 min)

    Stockholm Impact

    Cardinals by Grayson Moore and Aidan Shipley (Canada, 84 min) The Last Verse by Ying`Ting Tseng (Taiwan, 100 min) My Pure Land by Sarmad Masud (Great Britain, 92 min) Searing Summer by Ebrahim Irajzad (Iran, 83 min) Wild Roses by Anna Jadowska (Poland, 89 min)

    Open Zone

    A Fantastic Woman by Sebastián Lelio (Chile, USA, Germany, Spain, 104 min) A Man Of Integrity by Mohammad Rasoulof (Iran, 117 min) Amant Double by François Ozon (France, 110 min) April’s Daughter by Michel Franco (Mexico, 102 min) Based On A True Story by Roman Polanski (France, 110 min) Call Me By Your Name by Luca Guadagnino (Italy, France, 130 min) Free And Easy by Jun Geng (Honk Kong, 97 minutes) Gisslan by Rezo Gigineishvili (Russian Federation, Georgia, Poland, 103 min) Have A Nice Day by Liu Jian (China, 75 min) Ice Mother by Bohdan Sláma (Czech Republic, Slovakia, France, 105 min) Mr. Long by Sabu (Japan, Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, Germany, 129 min) On The Beach At Night Alone by Hong Sang`Soo (South Korea, 101 min) Our Time Will Come by Ann Hui (Honk Kong, 130 min) Radiance by Naomi Kawase (Japan, France, 101 min) Thelma by Joachin Trier (Norway, France, 109 min) The Shape Of Water by Guillermo del Toro (USA, 119 min) The Wandering Soap Opera by Raúl Ruiz and Valeria Sarmiento (Chile, 80 min) The Workshop by Laurent Cantet (France, 113 min)

    American Independents

    Band Aid by Zoe Lister`Jones (USA, 94 min) The Boy Downstairs by Sophie Brooks (USA, 91 min) Brigsby Bear by Dave McCary (USA, 100 min) Crown Heights by Matt Ruskin (USA, 99 min) The Endless by Aaron Moorhead, Justin Benson ( USA, 111 min) The Florida Project by Sean Baker (USA, 115 min) Gemini by Aaron Katz (USA, 93 min) Ingrid Goes West by Matt Spicer (USA, 97 min) Kings by Deniz Gamze Ergüven (France, Belgium, 86 min Life And Nothing More by Antonio Méndez Esparza (USA, 113 min) The Lovers by Azazel Jacobs (USA, 98 min) Keep The Change by Rachel Israel (USA, 94 min) Most Beautiful Island by Ana Asensio (USA, Spain, 80 min) Permanent by Colette Burson (USA, 97 min) Sollers Point by Matthew Porterfield (USA, France, 101 min) Who We Are Now by Matthew Newton (USA, 99 min)

    Icons

    Battle Of The Sexes by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris (Great Britain, USA, 121 min) Breathe by Andy Serkis (Great Britain, 117 min) Downsizing by Alexander Payne (USA, 135 min) The Final Journey by Nick Baker`Monteys (Germany, 100 min) Final Portrait by Stanley Tucci (USA, 90 min) Hannah by Andrea Pallaoro (France, 80 min) The Hero by Brett Haley (USA, 96 min) Let The Sunshine In by Claire Denis (France, 94 min) The Party by Sally Potter (Great Britain, 71 min) Reinventing Marvin by Anne Fontaine (France, 115 min) Rodin by Jacques Doillon (France, 119 min) Suburbicon by George Clooney (USA, 105 min) Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri by Martin McDonagh (USA, UK, 115 min) You disappear by Peter Schønau Fog (Denmark, 118 min) Wonder Wheel by Woody Allen (USA, 101 min)

    Discovery

    Axolotl Overkill by Helene Hegemann (Germany, 94 min) Daybreak by Gentian Koçi (Albania, Greece, 85 min) Disappearance by Ali Asgari (Iran, Qatar, 88 min) Don’t Swallow My Heart, Alligator Girl! by Felipe Bragança (Brazil, Netherlands, France, Paraguay, 108 min) If You Saw His Heart by Joan Chemla (France, 86 min) Killing Jesus by Laura Mora (Colombia, Argentina, 100 min) Menashe by Joshua Z Weinstein (USA, 82 min) Oh Lucy! by Atsuko Hirayanagi (Japan, USA, 97 min) The Testament by Amichai Greenberg (Israel, 88 min) Vazante by Daniela Thomas (Brazil, Portugal, 116 min)

    Documania

    Chavela by Catherine Gund and Daresha Kyi (USA, 90 min) Dina by Dan Sickles and Antonio Santini (USA, 101 min) Hondros directed by Greg Campbell (USA, 93 min) The Paris Opera by Jean`Stéphane Bron (France, 110 min) Return Of A President – After The Coup In Madagascar by Lotte Mik`Meyer (Denmark, South Africa, France, Madagascar, 78 min) Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked The World by Catherine Bainbridge and Alfonso Maiorana (Canada, 103 min) Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda by Stephen Nomura Schible (USA, 102 min) Served Like A Girl by Lysa Heslov (USA, 93 min) Shadowman by Oren Jacoby (USA, 83 min) Take Every Wave: The Life Of Laird Hamilton by Rory Kennedy (USA, 118 min) Walk with me by Max Pugh and Marc J. Francis (Great Britain, 94 min)

    Twilight Zone

    A Day by Sun`Ho Cho (South Korea, 90 min) Blade Of The Immortal by Takashi Miike (Japan, 140 min) The Cured by David Freyne (Ireland, Great Britain, France, 95 min) Double Date by Benjamin Barfoot (Great Britain, 90 min) Les Affamés by Robin Aubert (Canada, 100 min) Jailbreak by Jimmy Henderson (Cambodia, 92 min) Lowlife by Ryan Prows (USA, 98 min) The Merciless by Sung`Hyun Byun (South Korea, 120 min) Ugly Nasty People by Cosimo Gomez (Italy, France, 87 min) The Villainess by Byung`Gil Jung (South Korea, 129 min)

    Spotlight

    An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power by Bonni Cohen and Jon Shenk (USA, 99 min) Human Flow by Ai Wei Wei (Germany, 140 min) More by Onur Saylak (Turkey, 115 min) This Is Our Land by Lucas Belvaux (France, Belgium, 118 min) Wasted! The Story Of Food Waste by Anna Chai and Nari Kye (USA, 85 min) Zagros by Sahim Omar Kalifa (Belgium, 100 min)

    Stockholm XXVIII Short Film Competition

    A Gentle Night by Qui Yang (China, 15 min) Aria by Myrsini Aristidou (Cyprus, France, 14 min) Atelier by Elsa María Jakobsdóttir (Denmark, 30 min) Bonboné by Rakan Mayasi (Lebanon, Palestine, 15 min) Hombre by Juan Pablo Arias Muñoz (Chile, 21 min) Into the Blue by Antoneta Kusijanovic (Croatia, Slovenia, 22 min) Kudzu by Connor Simpson (USA, 15 min) Lost Property Office by Daniel Agdag (Australia, 10 min) Marlon by Jessica Palud (France, Belgium, 19 min) The Ogre by Laurène Braibant (France, 10 min) Retouch by Kaveh Mazaheri (Iran, 20 min) Signature by Kei Chikaura (Japan, 13 min) Superpower Girl by Soo`Young Kim (South Korea, 24 min) Time To Go by Grzegorz Mołda (Poland, 15 min) You Will Be Fine by Céline Devaux (France, 15 min)

    Special Event

    Neruda by Pablo Larraín (Chile, Argentina, France, Spain, USA, 107 min) Varg by Frida Kempff and Erik Andersson (Sverige, 11 min) Sea Sorrow by Vanessa Redgrave (Great Britain, 74 min) Surprise film

    1 Km Film

    Förebilder by Elin Övergaard (Sweden,13 min) In Love by Ville Gideon Sörman (Denmark, 29 min) Intercourse by Jonatan Etzler (Sweden, 10 min) Mephobia by Mika Gustafsson (Sweden, 24 min) Min Homosyster by Lia Hietala (Sweden,15 min) Push It by Julia Thelin (Sweden, 8 min) Skuggdjur by Jerry Carlsson (Sweden, 21 min) Stay Ups by Joanna Rytel (Sweden, 11 min) Stranded by Viktor Johansson (Sweden, 11 min) Turkkiosken by Bahar Pars (Sweden, 7 min) Image: Sally Hawkins and Octavia Spencer in the film THE SHAPE OF WATER. Photo courtesy of Fox Searchlight Pictures. © 2017 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation All Rights Reserved

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