THE 24th ANNUAL BETH TZEDEC CALGARY JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL
Welcome to the 24th Annual Beth Tzedec Calgary Jewish Film Festival! We’re proud, once again, to bring you an exciting line-up of outstanding films from Israel and around the world. And we are pleased that, during these challenging times for Israel and for the Jewish people as a whole, our festival continues to be a place where we can come together and experience the sense of community that has always been such an integral part of our film festival.
We’re delighted to have Calgary Jewish Federation join us as co-sponsors of the screening of the remarkable documentary 999: The Forgotten Girls, as part of the CJF’s community-wide Kristallnacht commemoration. This event is open to the entire community, free of charge.
Another film that will be offering to the community free of charge is the very powerful documentary We Will Dance Again, about the tragic events that unfolded on October 7th at the Nova Music Festival in Southern Israel. We are grateful to Calgary Jewish Federation for co-sponsoring this exceptional film,and would also like to extend a special thank you to Joe & Sondra Spier, and Ron & Barb Krell’s Niztanim Community Fund, whose generosity has helped make this free screening possible.
Among the other highlights of our festival, this year’s “Dr. Ralph Gurevitch Tikkun Olam Screening” will feature the gripping film The Stronghold, and this year’s “Dr. Martha Cohen Memorial Screening” will feature the captivating drama Halisa.
We’re excited to have the participation this year of Camp BB Riback as the sponsor of the feel-good comedy/drama Running on Sand. The movie will be preceded by the screening of the 2024 Camp BB Award winning film, When I Grow Up.
And we’re delighted to have JAC-Jewish Adult Calgary sponsoring the presentation of two poignant dramas Seven Blessings and Unspoken.
We feel honoured by the Jewish Historical Society of Southern Alberta’s choice of our film festival, once again, as the venue for their annual Jay Joffe Memorial Program. JHSSA will be co-sponsoring the screening of the documentary Moses Ezekiel: Portrait of a Lost (Cause) Artist, which brings to light the little-known story of this once-renowned Jewish-American artist.
As always, we would like to express our deepest thanks to all our sponsors, without whom this festival would not be possible. It is their generosity, community-mindedness and commitment to Jewish culture that enables us to offer this event to the community.
And a special thank you to the members of our dedicated Film Festival Committee who have spent months previewing films in order to bring you a diverse selection of engaging films that we hope will move and inspire you, entertain and delight you, enlighten and challenge you.
Harvey Cyngiser