Southern New England Jewish Ledger
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – The Pioneer Valley Jewish Film Festival, presented by the Springfield Jewish Community Center, marks its 17th anniversary with an eight-day festival program that officially kicks off April 30 and runs through May 7, 2023 and two additional films at two Pre-Festival Event Screenings on April 19 and April 26.
PVJFF continues its tradition of bringing the best of independent Jewish film to Western Massachusetts, presenting 12 film screenings at seven locations throughout the three-county region.
This year’s festival includes an eclectic mix of films from all genres and for all generations, including comedies, dramas, documentaries, and a musical. Insightful, thought-provoking Q&A sessions will follow many of the films, featuring writers, directors, and experts on an array of topics of cultural and historical significance.
“The Pioneer Valley Jewish Film Festival is a valued part of the arts and culture landscape in Western Mass,” says Sheri Alpert, Festival Director. “As we celebrate 17 years of extraordinary film programming, we are proud to share an expansive lineup that will stir emotions and inspire conversations. These films will stay with you.”
The JCC will also offer two special pre-festival events: on Wednesday April 19, the PVJFF is a sponsor of the Hometown Premiere of Four Winters: A Story of Jewish Partisan Resistance in WWII, with Northampton, MA-based filmmaker Julia Mintz in attendance to reflect on the film. On Wednesday April 26, we are co-presenting Karaoke with the Massachusetts Multicultural Film Festival at Umass Amherst’s Flavin Auditorium.
PVJFF officially opens on Sunday, April 30 with Fred Cavayè’s Farewell, Mr. Haffmann – a morally complex thriller about a Jewish jeweler in Nazi-occupied Paris, and the Faustian deal he must make with his employee in order to survive. The films cover several themes, including social justice, Israel and the Middle East, family and identity, comedy, music, the Holocaust, and intercultural issues.
Other noteworthy films include Reckonings, a fascinating film documenting the secret negotiations that took place in 1952 between Jewish and German leaders about compensation for Holocaust survivors; March 1968, a fact-based drama, telling the story of a young couple’s experiences getting swept up in the raging antisemitism and socio-political crisis of 1960s communist Poland; and The Ancient Law, a digitally restored gem from the silent era that will be presented with live music accompaniment by pianist Donald Sosin and klezmer violinist Alicia Svigals.
The festival closes with Prophets of Change, an inspiring documentary which tells the story of Israeli and Palestinian musicians who unite to break a cycle of fear and distrust in this look at the universal language of song. We will also feature the film’s director, Asaf Ben Shatrit, who will appear via Zoom for a talkback after the screening.
Ticket prices are $12 for general admission, $11 for students and seniors (65+). Tickets can be purchased online at pvjff.org, by phone at 413.739.4715, in person at the Springfield JCC, or at the Academy of Music, Amherst Cinema, and Greenfield Garden Cinema for the films screening at each theater. Seating for all screenings is limited and early arrival is recommended. Tickets are sold at the door subject to availability; advance purchase is recommended as films do sell out. For more information, visit the Pioneer Valley Jewish Film Festival online at pvjff.org.
Pioneer Valley Jewish Film Festival Lineup
Pioneer Valley Jewish Film Festival Lineup
Four Winters (Special Pre-Festival Event)
Wednesday, April 19, 6:30 PMAcademy of Music, NorthamptonThis essential documentary tells the stories of Jewish partisans who took up arms against Hitler’s war machine. Despite extraordinary odds, over 25,000 Jews bravely fought back against the Nazis and their collaborators from deep within the forests of Eastern Europe. These determined men and women, many barely in their teens, engaged in acts of sabotage, blowing up trains, burning electric stations, and attacking armed enemy headquarters. The last surviving partisans tell their stories to Northampton-based director Julia Mintz, who shines a spotlight on their bravery through inspiring interviews, personal photographs, and rare archival footage. Four Winters is a stunning, heartfelt narrative of heroism and resilience.
Post-screening discussion and Q&A with director, writer, and producer Julia Mintz
DOCUMENTARY | 2022 | 90 MINUTES
USA | ENGLISH
DIRECTED BY JULIA MINTZ
Trailer: https://fourwintersfilm.com/trailer
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Karaoke (Special Pre-Festival Event)
Wednesday, April 26, 7:30 PM
Flavin Auditorium, University of Massachusetts Amherst
co-presentation with the Massachusetts Multicultural Film Festival
Tova and Meir, a couple with 46 years of marriage and two grown daughters, live a comfortable and quiet life. That is, until they meet their neighbor, Itzik. They receive an unexpected jolt of excitement when Itzik invites them to his penthouse for karaoke. Tova and Meir fall hard for his energetic lifestyle. They enter into a competition amongst their other neighbors and soon find themselves vying to win Itzik’s attention. This offbeat and comedic journey delights and surprises.
COMEDY DRAMA | 2022 | 103 MINUTES
ISRAEL | HEBREW WITH SUBTITLES
DIRECTED BY MOSHE ROSENTHAL
Trailer: https://youtu.be/-BZfav1r16w
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Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature: San Francisco, Cleveland, San Diego, and Atlanta Jewish Film Festivals
Farewell, Mr. Haffmann
Sunday, April 30, 7:00 PM
Basketball Hall of Fame
Joseph Haffmann, a Jewish jeweler, aids his family in their escape from 1941 Nazi-occupied Paris with the intent to immediately follow them. In his haste to flee, Joseph offers his employee, François, the deed to his store as well as the apartment above it, until the war ends and Joseph returns. Unfortunately, Joseph finds that he can’t escape and is forced to seek protection from François and his wife, Blanche. Tensions between the three rise as they live in fear of being discovered. This gripping, morally complex thriller explores themes of greed, survival, and courage.
DRAMA | 2022 | 116 MINUTES
FRANCE | FRENCH WITH SUBTITLES
DIRECTED BY FRED CAVAYÈ
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZjGjA2lXD8
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The Ancient Law
Monday, May 1, 7:00 PM
Greenfield Garden Cinemas, Greenfield
A recently restored German silent film about Jewish life in 19th-century Europe, The Ancient Law is a precursor to Warner Brothers’ The Jazz Singer. The film tells the story of a rabbi’s son who yearns to become an actor, against the wishes of his father. With its historically authentic set design and ensemble of prominent actors, the film is an important piece of German-Jewish cinematic history that contrasts the closed world of an Eastern European shtetl with the liberal mores of 1860s Vienna. Live music accompaniment by pianist Donald Sosin and violinist Alicia Svigals.
DRAMA | 1923 | 128 MINUTES
GERMANY | GERMAN AND SILENT WITH ENGLISH INTERTITLES
DIRECTED BY EWALD ANDRÈ DUPONT
Trailer: https://vimeo.com/272851104
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Massachusetts Premiere
Audience Award for Documentary Film, 2023 Miami Jewish Film Festival
Reckonings
Tuesday, May 2, 7:00 PM
Basketball Hall of Fame
They met in secret to negotiate the unthinkable: compensation for survivors of the largest mass genocide in history. Holocaust survivors were in urgent need of help, but how could reparations be determined for the unprecedented destruction and suffering of a people? Directed by award-winning filmmaker Roberta Grossman, this documentary recounts the tense negotiations between Jewish and German leaders. Under the constant threat of violence, they forged ahead knowing it would never be enough, but hoping it could at least be an acknowledgement and a step towards healing.
DOCUMENTARY | 2022 | 74 MINUTES
USA | ENGLISH
DIRECTED BY ROBERTA GROSSMAN
Trailer: https://player.vimeo.com/video/785796958
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Massachusetts Premiere
Jews of the Wild West
Wednesday, May 3, 1:30 PM
Goldstein Auditorium, Springfield JCC, Springfield
From cowboys and gunslingers to entrepreneurs and artists, the colorful and largely overlooked contributions of Jews on the American frontier are revealed in this lively portrait. Escaping oppression and poverty, Jewish families joined other settlers in search of a better life. By the early 1900s, over 100,000 Jews put down roots in the Wild West, from Guggenheim and Levi Strauss to everyday merchants and cattlemen. A young Golda Meir spent formative years in Denver, and notorious Wyatt Earp, Bronco Bill, and Pancho Villa had Jewish connections. Fascinating interviews and a trove of archival materials recall the legacy and pioneering spirit of those who definitively shaped westward expansion. (Source: Atlanta Jewish Film Festival)
DOCUMENTARY | 2022 | 80 MINUTES
USA | ENGLISH
DIRECTED BY AMANDA KINSEY
Trailer: https://youtu.be/EX00KWGgn2w
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March 1968
Wednesday, May 3, 7:00 PM
Northampton Center for the Arts
Hania and Janek, a pair of rebellious college students blinded by love, find themselves swept up in the raging socio-political crisis of 1960s communist Poland. Although initially apathetic, the young couple find that the growing government censorship and antisemitic purges cannot be ignored. They are forced to choose sides once Hania’s Jewish family is forced to emigrate to safety and student protestors violently clash with the authorities. This handsomely crafted historical drama depicts the inexorable convergence of a whirlwind romance, a battle for national identity, and political awakening.
DRAMA | 2022 | 117 MINUTES
POLAND | POLISH WITH SUBTITLES
DIRECTED BY KRZYSTOF LANG
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSu_ZwxlJ8I&t=1s
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My Neighbor Adolf
Thursday, May 4, 7:00 PM
Amherst Cinema
Polsky, a lonely and grumpy Holocaust survivor, lives in the remote 1960s Colombian countryside. He spends his days playing chess and tending his beloved rose bushes. When a mysterious old German man moves in next door, Polsky suspects that his new neighbor is, of all people, Adolf Hitler. Since nobody believes him, he embarks on a detective mission to prove that what he believes is true. But in order to gather evidence, he will need to get closer to his neighbor than he would like. So close that the two could almost become friends.
COMEDY | 2022 | 96 MINUTES
ISRAEL, POLAND, COLOMBIA | ENGLISH, GERMAN, HEBREW, and SPANISH WITH SUBTITLES
DIRECTED BY LEON PRUDOVSKY
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/embed/Ii47Auvhls4
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Paris Boutique
Friday, May 5, 1:30 PM
Greenfield Garden Cinemas, Greenfield
Louise, a Parisian Jewish lawyer on her way to finalize an important real estate deal in Jerusalem, meets Neta, an Israeli freelance cabbie who dreams of opening a hotel in Mahane Yehuda. Together the two women stumble upon a secret connection between an ulta-Orthodox woman and a Christian man who communicate through notes hidden within the grooves of the Wailing wall in the Old City of Jerusalem. Intrigued by this mystery, Louise and Neta follow this puzzling couple through the alleyways of the city. This comedy of errors in the heart of magical Jerusalem follows the story of friendship between two women at a critical point in both of their lives.
COMEDY | 2022 | 81 MINUTES
ISRAEL, FRANCE | HEBREW, ENGLISH, FRENCH, ARABIC, and SPANISH WITH SUBTITLES
DIRECTED BY MARCO CARMEL
Trailer: https://player.vimeo.com/video/785796029
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Audience Award for Narrative Film, 2023 Miami Jewish Film Festival
Matchmaking
Saturday, May 6, 8:00 PM
Basketball Hall of Fame
In an ultra-Orthodox tale of star-crossed lovers, Moti (Amit Rahav, Unorthodox) spots Nechama and is instantly smitten, but knows that their love can never be. Moti, whose family is Ashkenazi (European), knows that he could never be allowed to date Nechama, whose family is Mizrahi (Middle Eastern) in origin. Although he experiences a whirlwind of dates with beautiful girls from all over the Orthodox community, Moti knows that he can’t fight against his feelings for his one true love. It’s a joyous tale of tolerance and love.
COMEDY | 2022 | 96 MINUTES
ISRAEL | HEBREW WITH SUBTITLES
DIRECTED BY EREZ TADMOR
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bUtSAm7-hY
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New England Premiere
Vishniac
Sunday, May 7, 3:30
Northampton Center for the Arts
Roman Vishniac is best known for photographing Jewish life in Eastern Europe in the 1930s. Intended to raise funds for impoverished Jewish communities, few predicted that these photographs would provide the last visual records of an entire world. But while Vishniac owes his fame to this specific collection, his prodigious body of work not only depicts an entire era of Jewish history, but also includes considerable contributions in the field of microscopic photography. This exploration of Vishniac’s career and photographs brings to life the world in which he worked and details his dramatic life story and flamboyant personality.
DOCUMENTARY | 2023 | 90 MINUTES
USA | ENGLISH
DIRECTED BY LAURA BIALIS
Teaser: https://vimeo.com/332316939
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Northeast US Premiere
Prophets of Change
Sunday, April 30, 7:00 PM
Amherst Cinema
In a land defined by conflict and division for centuries, a new generation of artists is reframing the conversation. In this documentary, Israeli and Palestinian musicians unite to break a cycle of fear and distrust in this inspiring, hopeful look at the universal language of song. They come from all walks of life and a wide range of styles, including rap, hip-hop, and heavy metal. Faced with condemnation and even death threats, these musical activists together forge a call to action and blueprint for peace. Penetrating and highly energetic, this sonic portrait of courage and compassion swells with a fist-pumping soundtrack of modern Middle Eastern music, and all-star roster of narrators including J.K. Simmons, Forest Whitaker, Sarah Silverman and more. (adapted from Atlanta Jewish Film Festival)
Zoom talk back with the director following the film.
DOCUMENTARY | 2022 | 83 MINUTES
ISRAELl, USA, PALESTINIAN TERRITORY | ENGLISH, HEBREW, ARABIC, UZBECK, FRENCH, AND AMHARIC WITH SUBTITLES
DIRECTED BY ASSAF BEN SHETRIT
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