(SOUTHBURY) – “Bikel: In the Shoes of Sholom Aleichem,” a new documentary that weaves together the lives of two beloved Jewish icons, will open the Sixth Annual Jewish Film Festival of Western Connecticut, Sunday, Oct. 14. The screening will be followed by a talk by Yale University Professor Shlomo Shoman. Sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Western CT, all festival films will be shown on Sundays at 2 p.m. at the Heritage Hotel in Southbury.

In addition to “Bikel,” the line-up of films include:

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 21
“A Bag of Marbles”

Based on Joseph Joffo’s autobiographical memoir, “A Bag of Marbles” tells the story of the Nazi occupation of France in 1941, through the eyes of two young Jewish boys who struggle to survive on their own. Always one false step from tragedy, the boys survive on courage, ingenuity, and more than a bit of cunning as they make their precarious way through France to reunite with family. Following the screening, State Senator Toni Boucher will discuss the recently-passed legislation mandating Holocaust and genocide studies in Connecticut public schools.

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 28
“Shalom Bollywood”

This new documentary tells the unlikely story of the 2,000-year-old Indian Jewish community and its formative place in shaping the world’s largest film industry. The tale is told through the lives of Indian cinema’s Jewish icons at the heart of Bollywood from the turn of the 20th century to the present day. Following the screening, Rabbi Daniel Romiel, spiritual leader of New York’s Rego Park Jewish Center, who was born and raised in Mumbai, will talk about the Jews of India in a religious home following the Indian Jewish tradition.

Tickets to each film are $8. For information: (203) 267-3177 x340.