THE 23rd ANNUAL BETH TZEDEC CALGARY JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL
Welcome to the 23rd Annual Beth Tzedec Calgary Jewish Film Festival!
We’re very excited to be back in-person this year, for the first time since the pandemic. We know that our audience is as eager as we are to come together again and experience the energy and sense of community that have always been such an integral part of our film festival.
We’re thrilled to have renowned Israeli film director Avi Nesher here with us in-person as our special guest on Opening Night. We have screened many of his films at our festival over the years, and we feel incredibly honoured and privileged to have a filmmaker of his stature in attendance at our festival to present his newest film, the heartwarming comedy/drama The Monkey House.
We’re delighted to have Calgary Jewish Federation join us as co-sponsors of the screening of the inspiring documentary Four Winters: A Story of Jewish Partisan Resistance and Bravery in WW2, as part of the CJF’s community-wide Kristallnacht commemoration. We’re thrilled to have filmmaker Julia Mintz, director, writer and producer of the film, as our special guest that evening. This event is open to the entire community, at no charge.
Another special guest that you won’t want to miss is award-winning Israeli filmmaker Tal Inbar, director of the of the engrossing documentary Closed Circuit.
Among the other highlights of our festival, this year’s “Dr. Ralph Gurevitch Tikkun Olam Screening” will feature the inspiring documentary Hope without Boundaries, and this year’s “Dr. Martha Cohen Memorial Screening” will feature our Closing Night film, the captivating documentary Without Precedent: The Supreme Life of Rosalie Abella.
We’re excited to partner with PJ Library to bring you a special movie event for the whole family! Come with your children and grandchildren to see the charming animated short film Something from Nothing, and then join us for a fun, hands-on crafting activity following the film. This event is free of charge.
And we’re delighted to have JAC- Jewish Adult Calgary partner with us in presenting the comedy/drama Perfect Strangers, as well as the poignant drama March ’68.
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 Vishniac, which explores the remarkable career and dramatic life of renowned photographer Roman Vishniac.
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