Center for Jewish Film's Festival brings unique screenings to Boston area

From April 30 to May 15, the festival will hold screenings and discussions around the city

courtesy

Sophie Tucker, the subject of the documentary "The Outrageous Sophie Tucker."

Screenings of more than a dozen films will be held across the Boston area as part of the National Center for Jewish Film's JEWISHFILM.2015 festival, including many presented and sponsored by Brandeis University organizations and departments.

The 18th annual festival will take place at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Kendall Square Cinema in Cambridge, and the West Newton Cinema.

Brandeis faculty will be featured guest speakers following several of the screenings, including Joyce Antler, the Samuel B. Lane Professor of American Jewish History and Culture and professor of women's and gender studies, Thomas Doherty, professor of American studies, and Shula Reinharz, the Jacob S. Potofsky Professor of Sociology, director of the Hadassah-Brandeis Institute and director of the Women's Studies Research Center.

The National Center for Jewish Film, located on the Brandeis campus since its founding in 1976, regularly collaborates closely with the university.

The following films are either being presented or sponsored by a Brandeis organization, or feature a guest speaker from the university's faculty. A full schedule, and ticket information, can be found on the festival's website:

"À la Vie (To Life)," a film about a young Auschwitz survivor and her friends as she tries to rebuild her life after war, will be screened May 7 at the Museum of Fine Arts and May 11 at Kendall Square Cinema. The screenings are co-presented by the Hadassah-Brandeis Institute and the Reinharz will be a guest for both screenings.

"The Art Dealer," a "Parisian thriller set in the murky world of Nazi-looted art," is co-presented by the Tauber Institute for the Study of European Jewry at Brandeis. Screenings will be held April 30 at West Newton Cinema and May 9 at the Museum of Fine Arts.

"Dancing Arabs" makes its Massachusetts premiere during the festival. The coming-of-age drama made its U.S. premiere at the Telluride Film Festival and was nominated for four Israeli Academy Awards. Screenings April 30 at West Newton Cinema and May 8 at the Museum of Fine Arts are sponsored by the Brandeis Hebrew Language Program.

“Farewell Herr Schwarz,” a documentary about family secrets and the Holocaust, will be shown May 3 at West Newton Cinema, with director Yael Reuveny on hand for the screening.  It is co-sponsored by the Center for German and European Studies.

“Forbidden Films: The Hidden Legacy of Nazi Film” makes its New England premiere at the festival. Doherty will be part of a roundtable discussion, which will be held after the screening at the Museum of Fine Arts May 6.

“The Kindergarten Teacher” tells the story of a teacher and one of her 5-year-old students who has a gift for poetry. The film received critical praise at the Cannes Film Festival. Screenings May 10 at West Newton Cinema and May 15 at the Museum of Fine Arts are sponsored by the Brandeis Hebrew Language Program.

“The Outrageous Sophie Tucker” is a documentary about Tucker, who was born into a poor Orthodox Jewish family in Russia and rose to become a star of vaudeville, Broadway, radio and television. Antler will be a guest speaker after the screening May 2 at the Museum of Fine Arts. A screening will also be held May 10 at West Newton Cinema. Co-sponsored by the Brandeis University Alumni Association and the Brandeis National Committee.

“Phoenix,” making its Massachusetts premiere, is about a Holocaust survivor who has undergone facial reconstruction and is searching for her husband in postwar Berlin. A Screening May 3 at West Newton Cinema is co-sponsored by Center for German and European Studies.

“Raise the Roof” will hold two screenings May 14, 4:30 p.m. and 7 p.m., at the Museum of Fine Arts. It's a documentary about MassArt professors Rick and Laura Brown, who set out to create a replica of the beautiful 18th century mural-covered wood synagogues of Poland that were destroyed by Nazis. The screenings are co-presented by the Tauber Institute for the Study of European Jewry.

"Rosenwald" describes how Julius Rosenwald used the wealth he built as co-owner of Sears, Roebuck and Company to become one of America’s most effective philanthropists. It features interviews with Julian Bond, John Lewis, Maya Angelou, David Saperstein and many more. A screening May 13 at the Museum of Fine Arts is co-sponsored by the International Center for Ethics, Justice & Public Life.

“Theodore Bikel: In the Shoes of Sholom Aleichem” is a documentary that paints a portrait of the two icons and the things they have in common. The May 3 screening at West Newton Cinema is co-sponsored by the Department of Near Eastern and Judaic Studies.