March 15th, 2023 - 3:00 pm to March 19th, 2023 - 8:00 pm
REHOBOTH BEACH JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL
The Rehoboth Beach Film Society (RBFS) is pleased to partner with Seaside Jewish Community to present the 8th anniversary of the Rehoboth Beach Jewish Film Festival (JFF). The five-day festival is confirmed for March 15 - 19, 2023 at Cinema Art Theater (CAT) in Lewes (behind the Wawa). Tickets are $12/film and with much thanks to an anonymous donor, we will provide a limited number of FREE admission tickets to students (with valid ID). View the complete listing of films and purchase tickets at www.RehobothFilm.com. Students should reach-out to [email protected] to request free festival film passes.
The festival serves to deepen awareness of Jewish culture and experiences, and to explore community differences and commonalities through the art of cinema. A special thanks to our 2023 Premier Sponsor, the Jewish Federation of Delaware.
“The JFF Planning Committee is excited to present this year’s slate of films that are sure to entertain, inform, and challenge the audience. Attendees will experience a greater understanding of how people from different times and backgrounds deal with today’s challenges. We look forward to post-film discussions and patron feedback.” As shared by Marty Rosensweig, JFF Planning Committee and RBFS Board of Director.
An expanded selection of nine films comprised of two documentaries and seven narrative/features along with the first-time addition of a series of five shorts are confirmed. “The program slate unites Jewish values with 21st Century contributions to music, fashion, culture and faith,” said Helen Chamberlin, Executive Director of RBFS.
A FEW FESTIVAL HIGHLIGHTS
At the conclusion of Saturday’s 7:00 PM screening of HAUTE COUTURE, the Society will host an after-party gathering post-screening in the CAT Lobby. The evening will be hosted by Fran Saltzman, Seaside Community and Festival Planning Committee member. To close out the Festival, on Sunday at 5:00 PM, DEDICATION, a narrative film will include a post-panel discussion with featured artist, director and producer, Roger Peltzman. This will truly be a celebration of Jewish culture here in Sussex County as the Society continue its efforts to reunite community around the art of film.
The Rehoboth Beach Film Society (RBFS) promotes the art of cinema through education and cultural enrichment programming. RBFS provides opportunities for film enthusiasts and diverse audiences to convene and celebrate cinematic achievement during events such as the annual Fall Rehoboth Beach Independent Film Festival (RBIFF). Other special programming includes The MET Live in HD, National Theatre Live from London’s West End, Exhibitions on Screen™, (Journeys in Art History) and Sunday’s Anime Matinee. The Society operates a two-screen theater complex, Cinema Art Theater (CAT) sharing the latest Indies, features and documentaries in Sussex County.
RBFS is accredited by the Standards for Excellence Institute® and is funded in part by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts as part of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). For more information about RBFS visit us at www.rehobothfilm.com.
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LOST TRANSPORT is an inspiring drama that takes place in the spring of 1945. A train deporting hundreds of Jewish prisoners gets stranded near a small German village occupied by the Red Army. Condemned to each other and in a context of deep mistrust, desperation and revenge, an unexpected friendship emerges between Russian sniper Vera, village girl Winnie and Jewish-Dutch woman Simone. [2022, Netherlands, 100 min, Rated: NR, in Dutch with English subtitlees].
Cinema Art Theater (CAT) in Lewes
March 15 3 pm
$12.00 RBFS Members
$12.00 General
$5.00 Student - With Student ID
AMERICA
America is the engrossing story of an Israeli man who returns to Israel after 10 years in America. An encounter with a childhood friend and his future-wife will change everyone’s lives. A story set between a flower shop and an ancient monastery, a swimming pool and the Mediterranean Sea, life and death - and somewhere in the middle. After the success of "The Cakemaker", writer/director Ofir Raul Graizer returns with an affectionate tribute to 60s and 70s cinema in a film full of emotion, color and fragrance that pays homage to values such as friendship, love and moral responsibility. [2022, Israel, 127 min, Rated: NR].
Cinema Art Theater (CAT) in Lewes
March 15 6 pm
$12.00 RBFS Members
$12.00 General
$5.00 Student - With Student ID
THE NARROW BRIDGE
The Narrow Bridge is a compassionate documentary that explores the journeys of four people who, after searing pain, develop strengths they never had before. Despite fierce opposition these Israelis and Palestinians, who lost a child in the conflict, are building a grassroots movement and transforming their grief into a bridge for understanding and reconciliation. [2022, Australia, 76 min, Rated: NR].
Cinema Art Theater (CAT) in Lewes
March 16 3 pm
$12.00 RBFS Members
$12.00 General
$5.00 Student - With Student ID
FAREWELL. MR. HAUFFMAN
Farewell, Mr. Haffmann is a compelling drama that takes place in 1941 Occupied Paris. All members of the Jewish community are instructed to come forward and identify themselves to authorities. Dedicated jeweler Joseph Haffmann (Daniel Auteuil), fearing the worst, arranges for his family to flee the city and offers his employee François Mercier (Gilles Lellouche) the chance to take over his store until the conflict subsides. But his own attempts to escape are thwarted, and Haffmann is forced to seek his assistant’s protection. It’s a risky proposition for both men, and one that Mercier’s wife Blanche (Sara Giraudeau) is skeptical of. As the couple move in to the Haffmann home, the agreement turns into a Faustian bargain, one that will forever change the fate of all. [2022, France/Belgium, 115 min, Rated: NR, in French with English subtitles].
Cinema Art Theater (CAT) in Lewes
March 16 6 pm
$12.00 RBFS Members
$12.00 General
$5.00 Student - With Student ID
WHERE LIFE BEGINS
Where Life Begins is a captivating drama about an ultra-orthodox Jewish family from Aix-les-Bains who goes to a farm in Calabria for a brief stay every year to carry out a sacred mission: harvesting citrons. Elio, the farm owner, meets Esther, the rabbi’s daughter, who is tired of the constraints imposed by her religion. Through this relationship, Esther will understand the importance of freedom and find her path, and, in the same way, Elio will find the peace he had lost for a long time. [2020, Italy, 100 min, Rated: NR, in Italian with English subtitles].
Cinema Art Theater (CAT) in Lewes
March 17 3 pm
$12.00 RBFS Members
$12.00 General
$5.00 Student - With Student ID
THE JEWS AND THE BLUES
The Jews and the Blues a musical and spiritual journey that along the way becomes something much more. Join Drew Stone, a documentary filmmaker, musician and talk show host as he follows his passion for music and adventure. In this film he travels to Israel and discover how the blues ties into this incredible mix of cultures. Arab, Ethiopian, Moroccan, all Jewish, all Israeli, united through the universal tie that binds us together.... Music. Experience the sights, sounds and the unexpected on this musical expedition into uncharted territory. [2022, US, 67 min, Rated: NR].
Cinema Art Theater (CAT) in Lewes
March 17 7 pm
$12.00 RBFS Members
$12.00 General
$5.00 Student - With Student ID
A STARRY SKY ABOVE THE ROMAN GHETTO
A Starry Sky Above the Roman Ghetto is a riveting drama that takes us to the past and present where Christian and Jewish students will meet upon the discovery of an old, mysterious photograph that will end up tying them together in search of the truth. Trying to unravel the mystery behind the portrait, the boys embark on a journey through a night of horror that cannot be forgotten: the raid of the Roman Ghetto. Retracing these painful events will give them the chance to take a collective stance towards personal, existential, and cultural commitment. [2022, Italy, 100 min, Rated: NR, in Italian with English subtitles].
Cinema Art Theater (CAT) in Lewes
March 18 3 pm
$12.00 RBFS Members
$12.00 General
$5.00 Student - With Student ID
HAUTE COUTURE
Haute Couture is an irresistible drama about Esther who is at the end of her career as Head Seamstress at Dior Avenue Montaigne workshop. One day, she gets her handbag stolen in the metro by a 20-year-old woman, Jade. Instead of calling the police she decides to take care of Jade. She sees in her the opportunity to pass on her skills, the craft of dressmaking, her only wealth. In the frenetic world of Haute Couture, Esther will give Jade la beauté du geste, a way to reach beyond herself. [2022, France, 122 min, Rated: NR, in French with English subtitles].Haute Couture ticketholders post-party reception will be held in the CAT Lobby!
Cinema Art Theater
March 18 7pm
$12.00 RBFS Members
$12.00 General
$5.00 Student - With Student ID