Films

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This iconic little ditty is easily one of the most familiar pieces of Jewish culture. Jews and non-Jews alike throughout the world recognize this tune in just a few notes. Singers as diverse as Connie Francis, Harry Belafonte, and Glen Campbell have all performed and recorded this Jewish standard during their careers. In fact, Hava Nagila is so ubiquitous, we never give it a second thought. In this film, Roberta Grossman takes a loving, often irreverent, and always entertaining look at the life of this amazingly resilient song, from its birth in the early-19th-century European shtetls though the dance culture of the kibbutzim in Israel’s founding era to today’s b’nei mitzvah and wedding circuit and beyond. Through interviews with famous recording stars, respected scholars, and average people on the street, this hilarious, thoughtful, and touching film will have you tapping your feet, grinning from ear to ear, and maybe even drying your eye from time to time. Colorado Premiere
—Steve Glickman

Selected Awards & Festivals

World Premiere, San Francisco Jewish Film Festival; Boston Jewish Film Festival; Philadelphia Jewish Film Festival

Opening Night Sponsor

Ellen Beller

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On July 4, 1976, the Israeli Defense Forces conducted one of the most daring rescue missions in history, flying over 4,000 miles to bring home 102 hostages held captive by terrorists in Entebbe, Uganda. Among the amazingly few Jewish casualties was a single IDF soldier – the mastermind behind the operation, Yoni Netanyahu. Yoni was the exemplar of martial leadership, a commander who cared as much for his country and countrymen as he did for the success of any given mission. But, he was much more than just a military hero – Yoni was also a man of passion and compassion. This deft combination of interviews with family members, friends and fellow soldiers that include prime ministers and cabinet members, family photographs, recordings from the raid on Entebbe, and narrated passages from Yoni’s letters and journals, presents a portrait of a complex man with the spirit of a fighter, the heart of a romantic, and the soul of a poet. Colorado Premiere
—Steve Glickman

Selected Awards & Festivals

Best of the Festival, 23rd Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival (2012); Best Documentary, 2012 Palm Beach International Film Festival; Best of the Festival, 2012 Charleston Film Festival; Best Documentary, 2012 Los Angeles Jewish Film Festival

Film Sponsor

Celeste and Jack Grynberg

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After leading Maccabi Tel Aviv to victory as European Champions in the late seventies, Max Stoller is offered the opportunity to coach the hopeless West German national team. Friends, family, and all of Israel are stunned when he accepts this position and view him as a traitor. Stoller, who was born in Germany before the war, lost his father in Auschwitz. Having convinced himself that Germany means nothing to him, Stoller quickly discovers that
neither returning to Germany, nor coaching their national team is as easy as he had hoped. He finds himself haunted by his own personal memories within the context of a nation attempting to find a way to live with the dark
history it created. Playoff is a thoughtful and moving feature film based on the true story of legendary Israeli basketball coach Ralph Klein. Colorado Premiere
—Roberta Bloom

Selected Awards & Festivals

2011 Jewish Film Festival Australia; 2012 Israel Film Festival Canada; 2011 Festival des films du Monde, Montréal, Canada

Film Sponsor

Julie and Saul Schwarz

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Anna, a young, idealistic, Jewish schoolteacher, accepts her first teaching assignment in a low income suburb of Paris, whose population is composed primarily of Arab immigrants. Fueled by her liberal minded optimism and determination to inspire, she reaches out to Lakdar, a promising young artist who finds his dreams shattered when, due to a medical error, his broken hand does not heal properly. Despite Anna’s sincere efforts, Lakdar is drawn into the growing unrest in the community and finds the opportunity to seek revenge for his misfortune. Unlike the usual classroom drama cliché, director Alain Tasma does not offer a simple solution but instead chooses to explore the complex issues which take place in contemporary France. Colorado Premiere
—Roberta Bloom

Selected Awards & Festivals

Toronto Jewish Film Festival; UK Jewish Film Festival; Atlanta Jewish Film Festival

Film Sponsor

Paul Gillis

In-Kind Sponsor

Alliance Française de Denver

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In this utterly delightful French comedy, we meet Alice, an attractive pharmacist in her late 30s, who is completely obsessed with the films of Woody Allen. She talks to a poster of the filmmaker, seeking guidance, and it talks back, helping her to frame her choices in life. She even prescribes his films to help alleviate her clients’ ailments. But, Alice is still single, and her anxious Jewish family is determined to find a great match for her, setting her up with a handsome Frenchman. This homage to Allen’s Play It Again, Sam, playfully pokes fun at the French passion for Allen’s films and features Allen in a small but important role. Colorado Premiere
—Roberta Bloom

Film Sponsor

Ricky and Don Safer

In-Kind Sponsor

Alliance Française de Denver

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Many Coloradans value the sport of skiing and make trips to the slopes as a regular part of their leisure lives. For a group of Israel Defense Forces veterans, however, skiing becomes a life-changing challenge. Beyond the Boundaries tells the story of four IDF soldiers, disabled in the line of duty, who come to Aspen through a program called Golshim L’Chaim (Ski to Live). Over the course of a week of intensive training, these combat veterans, whose physically active lives were shattered by their permanent injuries, learn to ski, a seemingly impossible feat. This profound physical achievement is matched, if not exceeded, by the emotional and spiritual healing each of the participants experiences. This moving, heartfelt film reminds us that even in the direst of circumstances, as we sing in the Israeli national anthem, Hatikvah, “our hope is not lost.” Denver Area Premiere
—Steve Glickman

Producer Nina Zale will be available
for a Q & A after the film.

Selected Awards & Festivals

Sarasota Film Festival; Miami Jewish Film Festival; Lenore Marwil Jewish Film Festival, Detroit MI; Newport Beach Film Festival; 2012 Rhode Island International Film Festival

Film Sponsor

Elaine Gantz Berman and Steve Berman in honor of Sarita Gantz

In-Kind Sponsor

Jewish Community Relations Council
SKEA

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When Adolf Hitler and the Nazis rose to power in 1933, many German Jews thought the Third Reich would be an unpleasant but quickly passing political fad, but Polish Jew Bronislav Huberman, one of the world’s foremost violinists, sensed a much darker future for the Jews. Turning down invitations to play with the world-renown Berlin Philharmonic in 1933, he instead wrote a scathing letter to German intellectuals challenging them to stand up to the Nazi degradations in the name of basic human principles. But Huberman’s crowning achievement in the perpetuation of the Jewish culture was his creation of the Palestine Philharmonic Orchestra in 1936, renamed the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra once Israel declared independence. Against all odds, Huberman assembled a 73-piece orchestra composed of first-chair musicians from the best orchestras in Europe. Set to a stirring music score, Orchestra of Exiles tells the story of this remarkable effort through which Huberman directly saved the lives of nearly 1,000 European Jews. Colorado Premiere
—Steve Glickman

Festivals & Awards

Hamptons International Film Festival; Washington Jewish Film Festival

Sponsored By

Marcia and Bernie Karshmer

In-Kind Sponsor

Colorado Public Radio

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In this Once meets The Jazz Singer story, Sasha (Grammy-nominated violinist Phillipe Quint) who, with his father and cousin form the Unique Quartet (the fourth member having been just deported to their native Russia), try to find a way to extend their visas rather than return to Russia. Sasha, a Juilliard student, is well on his way to the career his father has always imagined for him as a professional classical musician. But a chance meeting with Ramona (indie music sensation Nellie McKay), and her band, Downtown Express, opens his eyes to the contemporary music scene. Now Sasha must forge his own path, negotiating between his father’s Old World aspirations, which have their place in his soul, and the New World opportunities of contemporary music, which work their way into his heart. Colorado Premiere
—Steve Glickman

Selected Awards & Festivals

Grand Jury Prize, Gasparilla International Film Festival; Opening Night Film, Cinema Arts Festival, Houston

Soundtown Express – An Event for Teens

Immediately following the screening of Downtown Express, teens are invited to use their film ticket to hop on board the Soundtown Express, a real time participatory music/sound happening in the JCC Boettcher Lobby. Bring your musical instruments, voices, and other sound producing devices and join this once in a lifetime experience!

Kosher snacks will be provided.
The event will last for about one hour

Film Sponsor

All About Braces and  Rabbi Eliot & Hilary Baskin
In honor of Teen Film Board president, Jonah Baskin, and educational director, Gabe Baskin.

In-Kind Sponsor

KUVO/KVJZ

Teen Film Board Members

President: Jonah Baskin
Vice President: Sylvie Novins Montague
Communications Coordinator: Galit Deitel
Outreach Coordinator: Abe Mamet
Education Coordinator: Gabe Baskin
Marketing Coordinator: Joe Barber
Event Coordinator: Estee Hamo

Members at Large:

Yonatan Gottlieb, Ally Boyle, Sarah Senkfor, Jesse Aaronson

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Fiesty 96-year-old Miriam Weissenstein is working with her grandson Ben to save Tel Aviv’s Photo House from demolition. This small storefront houses the legacy of her husband, Israeli photographer Rudi Weissenstein, an official photographer of the Israeli Declaration of Independence and documenter of Israel’s history until his passing in 1992. Having opened the business in 1940 as the “Pri-Or” studio, it contains piles of his prints along with over one million negatives of his work. His stunning black and white photographs are featured prominently in the film. Grandmother and grandson are both compelling subjects, but it is their very special and warm relationship that breathes life into this film as the painful history around the death of Ben’s mother, Miriam’s daughter, unfolds as they work together to save the business. Colorado Premiere —Roberta Bloom

Awards

Israeli Ophir for Best Documentary; Best Documentary, Cinefest International Film Fest

Film Sponsor

Steve Winber

Preceded by

Flawed

Director: Andrea Dorfman
2011/Canada/13 minutes

Would you see yourself, and others a bit differently if you were dating a plastic surgeon, someone capable of fixing every flaw? Andrea Dorfman uses her colorful drawings and playfully insightful narrative to help us see the world a little differently in this short animated film.

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You won’t want to miss Israel’s 2012, box office hit, nominated for a record 15 Israeli academy awards! In this thoughtful allegory of contemporary Israeli society, we enter a world of human characters whose complex lives, full of joy and despair, exist in a world seemingly far from the international news headlines. Zafi is a young aspiring writer whose job as a house cleaner provides opportunities for research as she develops a storyline tying together the lives of estranged siblings. She shares their stories as they evolve within the context of an ongoing script writing class. The narrative unfolds around a man whose oldest son wakes up from a coma after nine years, the sister who discovers she is pregnant despite her total abstinence from sex, and the youngest brother who is determined to use laughter to cure his dying girlfriend by reuniting the “Gashashim” comedy trio for a performance despite the fact that one member of the trio is no longer alive. Rich, layered, and immensely satisfying! Note: Adult content. Colorado Premiere
—Roberta Bloom

[quote style="1"]“Wondrously strange is the tender new dramedy from Israeli fabulist Shemi Zarhin (Aviva, My Love). Full of quirky charm, this ambitious, multistrand tale about storytelling — and a fractured family — unfolds in a friendly Tiberias, Israel, where reality and fantasy cleverly intertwine.” —Alissa Simon, Variety
[/quote]

Film Sponsor

Priscilla Press in memory of Joel Ehrlich

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The Photo League cooperative, founded by college drop outs Sid Grossman and Sol Libsohn, was the focal point of the documentary movement in American photography from 1939-1951. Funded entirely by membership dues, they published a newsletter, presented exhibitions and ran a school implementing a curriculum developed by noted photographers Berenice Abbot and Paul Strand. Rooted in the values and upheaval of the 1930s, the Photo League attracted major artists such as Dorothea Lange and Arthur Rothstein who had already established their careers with the Farm Security Administration, as well as emerging émigré photographers such as Aaron Siskind, Jerome Liebling, Dan Weiner, Morris Engel, Walter Rosenblum, Weegee, Lisette Model and W. Eugene Smith who would grow to greatness within this politically charged and aesthetically minded community of colleagues. The film combines interviews of surviving members with a fabulous musical score of vintage and contemporary music and includes 350 images that create a powerful photographic portrait of urban life at that time. Colorado Premiere
—Roberta Bloom

Selected Awards & Festivals

Asolo Art Film Festival; Big Eddy Film Festival; San Diego Jewish Film Festival

Film Sponsor

Dan Recht and Rick Kornfeld, Recht Kornfeld, P.C.

In Kind Sponsor

GALLERY M Representing the Walter Rosenblum collection since 1999.

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Joe Papp in Five Acts is the story of the man who revolutionized theatre in New York through his radical thinking. Free Shakespeare in the Park, interracial casting, Hair, and A Chorus Line are just a few of his accomplishments. Along the way, he gave opportunities to many young actors, playwrights, and directors who grew to become familiar names including Meryl Streep, Christopher Walken, Martin Sheen, Kevin Kline and James Earl Jones, who are featured in this film. This thoughtful documentary presents the issues he pursued relentlessly; “freedom of expression, democracy in the arts, and the definition of American culture,” within the context of his own personal life, history, and heritage. Colorado Premiere
—Roberta Bloom

“I believe that great art is for everyone—not just the rich or the middle class. When I go into East Harlem or Bedford-Stuyvesant and see the kids who come to see our shows, I see nothing so clearly as myself.”
—Joe Papp

Selected Awards & Festivals

Tribeca Film Festival; Silverdocs

Film Sponsor

Susan C. Mathews
Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty

In Kind Sponsor

The Colorado Theatre Guild

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A persecuted family on the run. Sacred texts hidden for their protection. A 60-year-old promise, never forgotten but still unfulfilled. These may sound like the ingredients for the next Indiana Jones film, but here they describe the real life story of the Islamic Albanian Hoxha family and the Bulgarian-Jewish Aladjem family. Few people know that when the Germans ordered Albania to help round up Jews, Albanian King Zog issued an edict demanding that the mostly Islamic population of his country to assist the Jews in any way possible. This is when the paths of these two families crossed and a promise was made that would take two generations to fulfill. Basalt photographer Norman Gershman who first began documenting the everyday heroism of the Albanians in 2006, teamed up with filmmaker Rachel Goslins to shed light on an overlooked piece of history. In the process, they created an inspirational film that reminds us that never forgetting applies as much to acts of heroism and compassion as anything else. Denver Area Premiere
—Steve Glickman

Producer Bill Morgan will be present for a Q & A following the film.

Selected Awards & Festivals

Heartland Film Festival; Calgary Jewish Film Festival; Aspen Film Festival; Special Jury Award from the 13th Festival of Albanian Film

Film Sponsor

Joanne and Art Kleinstein and Family

Speaker Sponsor

Joyce and Gary Pashel

In Kind Sponsor

The Holocaust Awareness Institute

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From Repulsion to The Pianist, Chinatown to Pirates, Roman Polanski’s nearly 60-year film career has traversed an ongoing series of tremendous peaks and lowly valleys. From evading the Nazis in war time Poland to his wife Sharon Tate’s 1969 death in the Charles Manson murders to his 1977 arrest for statutory rape, Polanski’s public private life has been no less volatile. In this film, shot over the course of two lengthy conversations with friend and producer, Andrew Braunsberg – one which took place in Polanski’s Swiss home while he was under house arrest and fighting extradition back to the United States – Polanski shares his stories with unflinching honesty and sincere emotion. Director Laurent Bouzereau accentuates these deeply personal conversations with clips from Polanski’s oeuvre as well as family photographs and historical footage. If you think you know Roman Polanski from his films or the media, think again – and see this film. Colorado Premiere
—Steve Glickman

Followed by a discussion with Debbie Goodman and Jeffrey Haber

Selected Awards & Festivals

Cannes Film Festival; San Francisco Jewish Film Festival

Film Sponsors

Mark Boscoe/Ryley Carlock & Applewhite

In-Kind Sponsor

The Denver Film Society

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When Tal, a French Israeli teenager, writes a letter questioning the hatred between Israelis and Palestinians and asks her brother to throw her letter in bottle into the Mediterranean near Gaza, she could not have imagined the outcome. Naim, a frustrated Palestinian youth several years older than Tal, finds the message and sends an angry email to the address in the note, seeking to jolt the anonymous author out of her seeming naiveté. As their correspondence progresses, their understanding of the nuances of the conflict and their star crossed emotional attachment to each other deepens. Bottle in the Gaza Sea does not offer any clear answers to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. But through its diverse and believable characters, it explores the way the questions impact the real, day to day lives of the average citizens who live behind the screaming headlines and heated political polemic. Colorado Premiere
—Steve Glickman

Selected Festivals & Awards

Busan International Film Festival; New York Jewish Film Festival

Film Sponsor

Sandy Wolf

In Kind Sponsor

Alliance Française de Denver
Building Bridges

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Ruben has it made. He lives with his adorable boyfriend Teemu in quaint picture postcard Finnish village, he enjoys his job delivering the mail and his crazy family is far away in his native Pairs. However, Ruben’s idyllic existence is thrown into comic turmoil when a bizarre incident puts a sack full of Euros into his possession. Teemu, convinced that the booty is ill gotten, throws Ruben out and he is forced to return home. From the moment he lands and finds that his luggage – including the loot – has been lost, Ruben is besieged by all manner of family dysfunction: a secret affair, a pending divorce, an unfortunate one-night stand with the family’s lawyer (a well-regarded elderly gentleman of the Jewish community), a night in jail – all set to the backdrop of Passover preparations. The perfect ingredients for a Jewish holiday celebration! Note: Adult content. Colorado Premiere
—Steve Glickman

Festivals & Awards

Atlanta Jewish Film Festival;Vancouver Jewish Film Festival; Palm Springs International Film Festival

Film Sponsor

Joanne Singer

In Kind Sponsor

Alliance Française de Denver
Keshet

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Justine is a floundering twenty-something with a long track record of failed romances, a dead end job at an x-ray clinic, and a penchant for surreptitiously using the hi-tech equipment at work to create unusual works of x-ray art. Her sister and brother-in-law, plagued by infertility, are about to adopt a child – which means Justine is about to become homeless. And worst of all, Justine’s blundering sixty-something father, Eli, who maintains closer relationships
with her ex-boyfriends than with her, just announced that his second wife is pregnant. When a hunky shoe salesman enters the picture, Justine’s already chaotic life becomes even more unsettled. As Justine tries to figure out her life, she and her father inadvertently find something unusual on his heart while fooling around with the clinic’s CAT scan machine. Though Eli brushes the whole thing off, it turns out to be more serious he lets on. Jennifer Devoldère’s debut feature film blends quirky humor and honest tenderness to create a bittersweet tale of rediscovering love. Note: Adult content. Colorado Premiere
—Steve Glickman

Selected Festivals & Awards

Best Director, Newport Beach Film Festival; Best Actress, Newport Beach Film Festival, Boston Jewish Film Festival

Film Sponsor

Jordon and Essie Perlmutter, Vicki and David Dansky, Lisa and Shell Cook, Lisa & Jay Perlmutter, Lisa & Jonathan Perlmutter

In Kind Sponsor

Alliance Française de Denver

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In this hilarious evening, highlighted by rare cartoon clips from “The Simpsons,” as well as Reiss’ other creations, “The Critic” and “Queer Duck” (about a gay duck!), Reiss will speak about Jewish themes that have appeared within the context of “The Simpsons,” as well as its Jewish writers, characters and guest stars. He’ll also explain how a Jewish guy with no kids went on to publish seven Christmas books for children. Mike Reiss has won four Emmys and a Peabody Award during his 24 years as a writer for “The Simpsons.”

This special event has had record-breaking attendance at venues from San Francisco to Nashville, so get your tickets now!

Selected Film Festivals

San Francisco Jewish Film Festival; San Diego Jewish Film Festival

Event Sponsor

The Strear Family Foundation

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Who knew that the creator of Maus, the ground-breaking Pulitzer-prize-winning graphic novel about the Shoah, was also the illustrator the Garbage Pail Kids trading cards of the 1980s? This film gives us a guided tour of Art Spiegelman’s career, which has seen his artwork adorn the pages of unknown underground comics, his cutting-edge magazine Raw, New Yorker covers, his now classic Maus books, and a host of other publications. Spiegelman’s own trademark thoughtful irreverence, offers personal insights into his artist process (“Disaster is my muse.”) and specific works (“I still can’t get out from the shadow of an 800-pound mouse.”). Commentary from central figures in Spiegelman’s life, including his wife, daughter, and fellow artists, gives us further food for thought and we view highlights from his varied ourvre. If pictures say a thousand words, this film speaks millions. Colorado Premiere
—Steve Glickman

Selected Festivals & Awards

Toronto Jewish Film Festival; Boston Jewish Film Festival

Film Sponsor

Sharon and Jeffery Haber

Screening with

Audition

Director: Udo Carambolas
2011/The Netherlands/6 minutes

This short and profound animated film is inspired by real events. The use of thumbprints is nothing less than haunting.

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Most middle class, 13-year-old Southern California girls probably spend more time thinking about school, clothes, and boys than wondering where they’ll stay on any given night. But for Libby, an American Israeli who has just arrived in Tel Aviv from Los Angeles to live with her estranged, ne’er-do-well father, these typical teenage concerns are as far from her new daily life as California. On the way up to Northern Israel, Libby learns that this little trip is no vacation because her father is temporarily between jobs – and homes. When the 2006 Lebanon war breaks on the eve of their arrival, sending Libby from her cozy suburban bedroom to a crowded bomb shelter, her father concocts a scheme to take advantage of the opportunity Israelis citizens further south offer to host their northern neighbors that have been displaced by the war. During their stay, Libby learns more about father, with his endless series of pie-in-the-sky inventions and about herself. With its endearing, believable characters and its awkward, sometimes absurd situations, this coming of age story calls to mind films like Juno and Sunshine State as it follows Libby’s growth from a shy young girl to a more self-confident young woman. Colorado Premiere
—Steve Glickman

Selected Awards & Festivals

Berlin International Film Festival; Palm Springs International Film Festival

Film Sponsor

Emily Roet Realty and the Law Office of Michael Goodman

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What do “This Magic Moment,” “Save the Last Dance for Me,” and “Viva Las Vegas,” have in common? A polio-stricken, wheel-chair bound, Jewish song writer named Jerome Felder, a.k.a. Doc Pomus. The photographs of a pudgy Jewish kid on crutches hardly portend a successful career in popular music, but from the time he fast talked his way onto the stage to sing the blues as a teenager, Doc Pomus struck off on a path from his modest working class upbringing to recognition as one of the most brilliant songwriters of early rock and roll. Doc Pomus wrote over one thousand songs and the list of artists who performed them, from Elvis Presley to Ray Charles and Irma Thomas to Ruth Brown, goes on and on and on. In the tradition of Standing in the Shadows of Motown, this film shines the spotlight on one of the most pivotal men behind the scenes of rock-n-roll, blues, and popular music. Colorado Premiere
—Steve Glickman

Followed by a dessert reception

Selected Festivals & Awards

Grand Prize, Stony Brook Film Festival; Toronto Jewish Film Festival; New Orleans Film Festival; Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival; Jerusalem Jewish Film Festival

Grand Finale Sponsor

Gary and Terri Yourtz

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After the death of their father, Israeli documentary filmmaker David Fisher takes his grown siblings on a “vacation.” Using the holocaust diary of their father as a guide, they follow his path through the Nazi camps in Austria that he had miraculously survived as a teen, revealing the excruciating details of a history that he had never been able to share with his children. The filmmaker is the only one of the siblings who felt compelled to read the diary, and through this surreal road trip they embark on an intense psychic voyage through a hauntingly beautiful and peaceful landscape that conceals the tragic events that took place there many years earlier. The journey is interspersed with laughter and tears as the siblings come to know their father and each other from a new perspective. Colorado Premiere
—Roberta Bloom

Selected Awards & Festivals

San Francisco Jewish Film Festival; Seattle International Film Festival; Best Documentary, Krakow Film Festival; Best Documentary, Dokfest, Munich

Film Sponsor

Hildie Newman

In Kind Sponsor

The Holocaust Awareness Institute

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In 1997, New York City District Attorney Robert Morgenthau issued a subpoena to prevent the Museum of Modern Art from returning a borrowed painting to its allegedly rightful owner – and thus began a legal battle worthy of a John Grisham novel that pitted the descendants of an Austrian art dealer and a dedicated DA against the some of the most powerful museums and philanthropists in the world. The painting in question, Egon Schiele’s portrait of his mistress, Walburga “Wally” Neuzil, had been purchased in 1954 by Rudolf Leopold, an avid Schiele collector. However, in 1939, “Wally” was part of Viennese gallery owner Lea Bondi’s private collection. The mystery of what happened to “Wally” between Bondi’s forced flight from Nazi Germany in 1939 and Leopold’s purchase in 1954 lies at the center of this gripping documentary that will keep you glued to your seat. Colorado Premiere
—Steve Glickman

Selected Festivals & Awards

World Premiere Tribeca Film Festival; Silverdocs Documentary Festival; Toronto Jewish Film Festival; DocAviv

Film Sponsor

Carol and Irwin Wagner

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When Ameer Abu Ria, an Arab-Israeli, decides to follow the path laid by his father and grandfather, both Israeli Defense Force veterans, he finds himself torn between commitment to the state he loves and acceptance within the ethnic community he loves no less. Ameer Got His Gun tells the story of a young man coming into the courage of his convictions in order to pursue his dream of peaceful coexistence between two peoples he considers cousins. Colorado Premiere —Steve Glickman

Selected Festivals & Awards

Special Mention, Jerusalem International Film Festival; Grand Prize, FIPA; Best International Documentary, Chagrin Film Festival; London International Documentary Film Festival

My Neighbourhood (Following Ameer Got His Gun)

Directors: Julia Bacha/Rebekah Wingert-Jabi
2012/Israel/Palestine/USA/25 minutes
Arabic, Hebrew, English with English subtitles.

Like many other Palestinians, young Mohammed’s family is suddenly evicted when a group of Jewish Israelis arrive unannounced and assume ownership of the east Jerusalem built by Mohammed’s family in the 1950s. On the other side of the Green Line, a brother and sister find that they can no longer remain uninvolved in what they see as a human rights failure in the part of the nation they love. Neighbourhood documents the unlikely alliance between Palestinian residents of Sheikh Jarrah and Jewish Israeli activists as both seek a just resolution. Colorado Premiere —Steve Glickman

Ronit Avni, producer of My Neighbourhood, will be present for a Q and A after the film.

Selected Festivals & Awards

Tribeca Film Festival; San Fran Jewish Film Festival

Film & Speaker Sponsors

Lynda Goldstein and Margery Goldman

In Kind Sponsor

Alliance Francaise Denver

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In this charming comedy set in a newly revitalized LA, Deb Dorfman (Sara Rue) is a mousy young woman who seems to find time to care for everyone except herself. Her cranky, widower dad (Elliot Gould), thoughtless, accountant brother who she works for, and his self absorbed journalist friend (for whom she holds a secret crush), are all happy to take advantage of her generous nature. When the journalist, leaving on assignment in Afghanistan asks her to house sit his new apartment in downtown LA, this girl from the sheltered San Fernando Valley begins to see the world in a whole new way. With new friends, exotic foods to try, a new look, and adventures on the subway, no less, this nice Jewish girl suddenly opens her eyes to the world around her. Colorado Premiere
—Roberta Bloom

Screenwriter Wendy Kout will be present for a Q & A after the film.

Selected Festivals & Awards

Best Comedy, LA Jewish Film Festival; Best Feature, Miami Jewish Film Festival; Best Feature, Hollywood Film Festival; Best Feature, Marbellain Internacional Film Festival

Film & Speaker Sponsor

Erica Singer

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After discovering his secret stash of women’s clothing, Assaf’s parents lock him out of the house, thinking he will quickly understand the error of his ways. Instead, Assaf vanishes from their lives. Four years later, Assaf’s mother hires a private detective to her track down her missing son to tell him that his father is dying of cancer. Instead of finding Assaf, the detective discovers Anna, a beautiful transgendered performer who at first reveals no interest in the people who brought her into this world. When a young nurse appears at the hospital to care for the dying father, each member of the family slowly begins an unexpected journey beyond their own expectations and towards tolerance and acceptance. Melting Away is the beautifully filmed and emotionally poignant story about finding one’s way home – to family and to self. Colorado Premiere
—Steve Glickman

Awards

Audience Award at the Shalom Europa IFF, France 2012; Festival Award – IMAJ Israeli Film Festival, Belgium 2011; Special award for breakthrough performance to Hen Yani, Tel Aviv; International LGBT Film Festival; Audience Choice Award, Boston Jewish Film Festival

Film Sponsor

Kathy and Arthur Judd

In Kind Sponsor

Keshet