The festival opens at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 5, at the Atlas Cinemas Shaker Square with The Unorthodox, a film about a man who starts a grassroots movement to form a party of Mizrahi Jews.
The festival will also bring back three films that were audience favorites from prior years, and the schedule includes AKA Doc Pomus, a film that pays homage to Doc Pomus, the blues singer-songwriter who penned “Viva Las Vegas” and dozens of other hits, and Sixty Six, a bar-mitzvah themed film that coincides with the tidal wave of interest in World Cup Soccer.
Tel Aviv on Fire, another highlight, satirizes the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and centers on a soap opera that’s popular with both Israel and Palestinian audiences. The producer finds himself in a awkward position as he tries to satisfy an Israel commander, the commander’s wife (she’s an avid fan) and the show’s Arab backers. That screening takes place at 7 p.m. on Sunday, Sept 15, at the Cedar Lee Theatre.
FilmFest tickets go on sale on Aug. 5 at mandeljcc.org. Tickets will also be available at the Mandel JCC membership desk (no ticket sales on Saturdays).
Visit mandeljcc.org or call 216-831-0700 ext. 0 for more details and ticket information.
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This article appears in Jul 24-30, 2019.
Why does it have to be at the JCC? Why can’t theaters be rented, the way other festivals do?
Or maybe the temple on East 105th? The JCC is too small, and it’s a dump!