Jewish film blog

Calling all filmmakers

This in from Daily Jews

The second UK Jewish Film Festival's Short Film Funds competition is now inviting entrants. A £15,000 grant is up for grabs to the winning submission to make a film with a Jewish theme to appeal to both a Jewish and non-Jewish audience.

The second UK Jewish Film Festival's Short Film Funds competition is now inviting entrants.

More info here.

Jews of Mexico on film

This sounds very interesting:

"In the early twentieth century, thousands of European Jews sailed to Mexico seeking opportunity and escaping persecution at home."

"The documentary Tijuana Jews tells the story of this unique community which blended Jewish and Mexican cultures and customs in an unlikely place and time."

Find out more about Tijuana Jews here.

Everything Is Illuminated

This in from Caroline Westbrook

The trailer for the film version of Jonathan Safran Foer's cult novel Everything Is Illuminated has just been released, and is well worth a look.

Directed by Jewish actor Liev Schrieber (who was last seen in The Manchurian Candidate), the film stars Elijah Wood as the author, who heads for a remote part of Ukraine to trace the woman who saved his grandfather from the Nazis several decades ago. His guides on the trip are a young Ukranian named Alex with a decidedly dodgy grasp of English, and his grandfather, whose grumpiness is concealing a dark secret from his past.

At first glance it looks as though this ought to be a difficult book to put on film. The action spans several centuries, the plot frequently borders on the surreal, and much of it is narrated by Alex in broken English. However, if the trailer is anything to go by it looks like Schreiber and co have done a good job. Wood, almost unrecognisable in big glasses and dark suit, is appealing as Foer, while other moments in the trailer suggest that the blend of comedy and emotional drama will work very well indeed.

The film's due out in December – and if it lives up to the promise of the trailer could be one of the best Jewish movies we've seen in ages.

Click here for the trailer

How Jewish is Star Wars?

So the ongoing discussion continues - what is the hidden religious message behind Star Wars? And which faith has a better claim over the films?

The Houston Chronicle reports:

Some believers in Judaism see their view of the human condition depicted in Lucas' movies. Rabbi Alexander Seinfeld sees clear similarities between Star Wars mythology and Jewish mysticism.

"I remember after having learned more about Jewish tradition, I became convinced that Lucas must be Jewish!" says the rabbi, author of The Art of Amazement: Judaism's Forgotten Spirituality.

Brit director wins $1m award

Peter Brook a opera and film director has won a $1m Dan David award from Tel Aviv University.

The awards recognise archaeology, the performing arts and materials science and were established by Dan David, the founder of intant photo booth company Photo Me.

Brook is based in Paris and among his movies are Beelzebub and King Lear.

More coverage here.

Hanna wins at Cannes for Free Zone

Israeli Hanna Laslo, better known for her comedy performances has scooped the best actress award at Cannes for the film Free Zone.

The film directed by Amos Gitai, also stars Natalie Portman as an American living in Israel.

From Amos Gitai's synopsis:

Rebecca (Natalie Portman), an American who has been living in Jerusalem for a few months now, has just broken off her engagement. She gets into a cab driven by Hanna (Hanna Laslo), an Israeli. But Hanna is on her way to Jordan, to the Free Zone, to pick up a large sum of money that "the American", her husband's partner, owes them. Rebecca persuades Hanna to take her along. When they reach the Free Zone, Leila (Hiam Abbass), a Palestinian, explains that the American isn't there and that the money has vanished....

More coverage here at SomethingJewish.

Jewish films on the web

JTA reports

More than 300 films, including some rare old footage, are available to viewers at Hebrew University’s Web site.

The films have been gathered by the Steven Spielberg Jewish Film Archive, which began digitizing some of its holdings three years ago. The goal is to make at least 500 of the films available on the Internet by 2007.

Spielberg back with a Vengeance

Finally there's some confirmation on Steven Spielberg's movie about the massascre of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics by the Palestinian group Black September.

The film is set to be called Vengeance and will be filmed in Hungary.

This much speculated film is set to star Hulk and Troy Aussie actor Eric Bana and British actor Daniel Craig.

It's hoped that the film could be be released by Xmas so as to quality for next year's Oscars.

Should Spielberg manage it, it could be a repeat of 1993.  That year his summer blockbuster Jurassic Park was released and followed by the serious Schindler's List which won numerous awards Oscars.  This time, his summer blockbuster is War of the Worlds and no doubt he is hoping Vengeance will show he can once again triumph at the Oscars.

Free tickets to see Spanish Jewish comedy Only Human

If you are free on Thursday night at 6.20pm and can make it to the Screen on the Hill in Belsize Park in London, then there are some free tickets up for grabs to see Spanish Jewish comedy Only Human. After the film there is a Q&A with writer/directors Teresa de Pelegri and Dominic Harari.

From the blurb:

Leni (Marián Aguilera) arrives home to introduce her fiancé Rafi (Guillermo Toledo) to her Jewish family for the first time. Her mother Gloria (Norma Aleandro), her promiscuous sister Tania (Maria Botto), Tania's contrary 8 year old daughter Paula, her recently orthodox brother David and her blind grandfather Dudu. Everything goes wonderfully until the lovers reveal that Rafi is Palestinian. With his future mother-in-law Gloria unhinged by the news, Rafi tries to ingratiate himself by helping in the kitchen. To make matters worse he accidentally drops the soup he was meant to defrost out the seventh floor window, hitting a pedestrian below. Rafi sneaks downstairs to check on the body and retrieve the soup. Having seen the victim, Rafi rushes upstairs not knowing what to do! As he returns to the kitchen he notices a family portrait of Leni's father which bears a very close resemblance to the corpse lying outside.

If you are interested, drop an email to info@vervepics.com with your name and number so you can be contacted about how you can claim your tickets.

Zucker brothers up for 10 awards

Alles auf Zucker, the first German Jewish comedy, since, well.. er... has picked up a record breaking 10 nominations in 15 categories at the annual German Film Prize.

The awards, the German version of the Oscars will be announced in July.

Alles auf Zucker, or Go for Zucker is about a secular German Jew from east Germany and his brother from west Germany and how they deal with the death of their mother. According to the mother's will, they will only get their  get their inheritance if they reconcile and arrange an Orthodox funeral for her in Berlin.

Among the awards, Alles auf Zucker has been nominated for are best picture, best actor, best picture, best acress and best director.