The dates for the screenings are January 28 – March 3. (Every Thursday). All movies will be screened at the Wesleyan University Center for Film Studies, at the Goldsmith Family Cinema, 301 Washington Terrace, Middletown, CT at 8pm.
Free Admission. On site parking.
The Festival is organized by Dalit Katz, Adjunct Associate Professor of Religion and Director of the Center for Jewish Studies at Wesleyan University. It is sponsored by the Ring Family, the Center for Jewish Studies, and co sponsored by the College of Film and the Moving Image.
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Apples from the Desert (January 28)
English subtitles
Directed by Matti Harari & Arik Lubetsky (2014)Watch trailer |
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 Apples from the Desert is based a story by Savyon Liebrecht. Rivka, an only daughter of an orthodox Jewish family, is drawn to the secular life and ends up running away from her heartbroken parents, to live with a man in an isolated kibbutz in the desert. Speaker: Eran Polishuk, Director of Film and Media, Office of Cultural Affairs, Consulate General of Israel in New York |
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GETT: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem (February 4)
English Subtitles
Directed by Ronit Elkabetz & Shlomi Elkabetz (2014) |
Watch trailer
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 Viviane is seeking to finalize her divorce (Gett) from her devout and stubborn husband. During the long and tedious process, she finds herself on trial being at the mercy of the religiously based divorce laws adopted by the state. Speaker: Marc Longenecker, Visiting Faculty in Film Studies and Programming and Technical Director, Wesleyan University |
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Present Continuous (February 11)
English subtitles
Directed by Aner Preminger (2012) |
Watch trailer
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Unable to deal with the violence resulting from the political situation in Israel, a mother decides to lock up her teenage daughter, soldier son and husband while they are sleeping in order to protect them. The viewer is left to decide whether this is a crazy act or act of bravery. Speaker: Aner Preminger, Film Director and Distinguished Visiting Scholar at the Center for Jewish Studies, Wesleyan University
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Zero Motivation (February 18)
English subtitles
Directed by Talya Lavie (2014) |
Watch trailer
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Feature Award at the Tribeca Film Festival, Zero Motivation is a unique, sharply observed, sometimes dark and often hilarious portrait of everyday life for a unit of young, female soldiers in a remote Israeli desert outpost. Playing out like M*A*S*H meets Orange is the New Black, Talya Lavie’s brilliant debut details the power struggles of three women with different agendas and very little to do.
Speaker: Aner Preminger, Film Director and Distinguished Visiting Scholar at the Center for Jewish Studies, Wesleyan University |
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The Farewell Party (February 25)
English Subtitles
Directed by Tal Granit & Sharon Maymon (2014) |
Watch trailer
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A unique, compassionate and unlikely funny story of a group of friends at a Jerusalem retirement home who build a machine for self-euthanasia in order to help their terminally ill friend. When rumors of the machine begin to spread, more and more people ask for their help, and the friends are faced with a life and death dilemma.
Speaker: Laura Blum, Film Critic |
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Screening of Three Episodes of the Israeli TV Show Fauda (March 3)
English Subtitles
Directed by Lior Raz, Avi Isaacharoff (2015)Watch trailer |
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“Fauda” (Arabic for ‘Chaos’) shows the story of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from both sides. On the one hand, Doron and his special team disguised as Palestinians blending into the Arab community and are hunting the Hamas leader Abu-Ahmed. On the other hand, one sees the tragic life of Abu-Ahmed and his family and their escalating hatred towards Israel.
Speaker: Isaac Zablocki, Director of JCC Manhattan Film Programs |
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