MANDEL JCC
film fest
BEST OF JEWISH CINEMA
SEPTEMBER 4-14, 2025
Welcome
Dear FilmFest Fans,
For 19 years, the Mandel Jewish Community Center has proudly presented the Cleveland Jewish FilmFest. The annual festival showcases the best of international Jewish-themed cinema, bringing award-winning films to Greater Cleveland for almost two decades to educate and entertain audiences.
The FilmFest Committee spends months each year previewing hundreds of films to select the very best to bring to our community. These powerful and independent films spark new and unique perspectives that explore the diversity of the Jewish experience. The festival provides the Mandel JCC the opportunity to gather the community to create important dialogue about current issues.
The success of the Cleveland Jewish FilmFest would not be possible without the generous continued support from foundations, businesses, sponsors and community members. We are especially grateful for their invaluable involvement at a time when arts programs like the Cleveland Jewish FilmFest are facing significant reductions in government funding.
A sincere thank you to our audience for its ongoing interest and patronage over the years. We hope you find this year’s films captivating, thought-provoking and, sometimes, humorous.
Bruce Rosenbaum Jesse Rosen Board Chair President and CEO
Tickets
TICKET PRICES
Opening Night Film & Dessert Reception ...... $25
Advance Tickets ............ $12
At the Door ................ $14 On Demand Streaming ...... $15/household TV Series ......... $20/household
TO PURCHASE TICKETS
Preferred method: mandeljcc.org/filmfest
Tickets can also be purchased at: Theater on day of show Tickets will go on sale 45 minutes before each show (if available).
Discounts available for groups of 10 or more.
ALL ACCESS TICKET
All On Demand Films and TV Series
($50 discount) .............. $50
All In-Person Films
($73 discount) ............. $180
• All in-person films excluding shorts at the Maltz Museum
• One low price
• 20-minute early entrance
• Limited availability
INDIVIDUAL TICKET HOLDERS
General admission line. May enter theaters approximately 15 minutes before start time (after All Access ticket holders enter).
Ticket and pass holders who arrive late are not guaranteed seating. No refunds or exchanges.
Free* Film Screenings
For Ages 60+
Limited numbers of free tickets are available for film attendees age 60+.
* Restrictions apply:
• 1 pm weekday screenings at the Cedar Lee Theatre only
• Limit of two free films per person
• Tickets must be reserved in advance on line by visiting clevelandjewishfilmfest25. eventive.org or scanning the QR code. Discount code: 60+
Venues
Cedar Lee Theatre*
2163 Lee Road
Cleveland Heights, OH 44118 clevelandcinemas.com
Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque 11610 Euclid Avenue Cleveland, OH 44106 cia.edu/cinematheque
Cleveland Museum of Natural History 1 Wade Oval Drive Cleveland, OH 44106 cmnh.org
Maltz Museum
2929 Richmond Road Beachwood, OH 44122 maltzmuseum.org
Mandel JCC
26001 S. Woodland Road Beachwood, OH 44122 mandeljcc.org
* Parking Please note, there is no longer a parking lot behind the Cedar Lee Theatre. Parking is available in the parking garage and behind CVS. The courtyard walkway has been paved, providing easier access from the parking garage to the theatre. Be sure to allow ample time for parking and walking to the theatre.
At a Glance
ONCE UPON MY MOTHER
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4 • 7 PM • DESSERT RECEPTION FOLLOWS CLEVELAND MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY
Director: Ken Scott, France/Canada, French with subtitles, 2025, 110 minutes Paris, 1963. The youngest of a Jewish family of six, Roland is a boy like no other. According to the doctors, he’ll never walk, but his stubborn mother, Esther, simply refuses to accept this. Born with a club foot, she promised her son that he would be able to walk just like everyone else and have a wonderful life. Esther devoted herself fully to ensuring this promise came true. Spanning decades of hardships and miracles, this film is the true story of incredible destiny and the greatest love of all: a mother’s love for her child.
Audience Favorite: 2025 Toronto Jewish Film Festival
COMEDY, DRAMA
Opening Night Sponsor: The Harry K. Fox and Emma R. Fox Charitable Foundation
Popcorn Sponsor: Andria Cowan Young
Candy Sponsor: Gail & Ed Weintraub
Night Opening
CHARLES GRODIN: REBEL WITH A CAUSE
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 5 • 1 PM
CEDAR LEE THEATRE
Director: James Freedman, U.S., English, 2024, 93 minutes
A celebration of Charles Grodin’s hilarious acting career, and his remarkable, decades-long, successful fight to release wrongly convicted people out of prison. Inspired by his Jewish upbringing in Pittsburgh, Grodin’s life was an embodiment of the concept of Tikkun Olam. The film includes interviews with Robert De Niro, Steve Martin, Martin Short, Carol Burnett, Paul Simon, Art Garfunkel, Alan Arkin, Ellen Burstyn, Lewis Black, Marlo Thomas, Jon Lovitz, plus several of the women Chuck advocated to be released from prison.
EXTRA INNINGS
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 5 • 4 PM
CEDAR LEE THEATRE
Director: Eric Ratinoff, U.S., English, 2025, 30 minutes
How do we stay connected to a loved one we’ve lost? Clevelander Ben Light asked that question as his father’s 60th birthday approached, a year after his death. Ben feared the milestone would intensify his feelings of loss. But then Ben spent the day doing what he imagined his father would do: watching the Cubs at Wrigley Field. Ben got a few “extra innings” with his dad, and the idea became a tradition. It’s since inspired others to stay connected to loved ones they’ve lost. Ben’s story is a moving reflection on the power of love, memory, and connection.
Q&A with filmmaker and Ben Light follows.
PINK LADY
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 6 • 9 PM
CEDAR LEE THEATRE
Director: Nir Bergman, Israel, Hebrew with English subtitles, 2025, 106 min
Bati’s happy life with her husband and three children in a close-knit ultra-Orthodox community in Jerusalem begins to crumble when she learns that her husband, Lazer, is being blackmailed over intimate photos that link him romantically with a male study partner. Surprising and suspenseful, this nuanced and generous character study explores a marriage in peril and two young people desperate to save each other while confronting their own desires.
Winner – Jury Prize, Best Narrative Film, Atlanta Jewish Film Festival
SWEDISHKAYT: YIDLIFE CRISIS IN STOCKHOLM
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 7 • 10 AM
CEDAR LEE THEATRE
Directors: Eli Batalion & Jamie Elman, Canada/Sweden, English and Yiddish with English subtitles, 2025, 60 minutes
Self-proclaimed international Yiddish-ish icons YidLife Crisis – comedy duo Eli Batalion and Jamie Elman – arrive in Stockholm, Sweden to prepare for a live show while unraveling the little-known history of Sweden’s Jewish community. From the earliest Jewish immigrants to discovering how Yiddish, an almost forgotten language, became a protected government-recognized language in Sweden, they dive into a cultural revival that’s as unexpected as it is joyous. A warm and funny portrait of a community that thrives on resilience and reinvention, celebrating the quirky, surprising ways that language and identity continue to evolve.
DOCUMENTARY Sponsor: Anonymous and Sandi & Martin Horwitz
MARATHON MOM
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 7 • 12 PM
CEDAR LEE THEATRE
Directors: Rebecca Shore and Oren Rosenfeld, Israel, English & Hebrew with English subtitles, 2024, 91 minutes
Beatie Deutsch, an Orthodox mother of five, is racing to fulfill her dream to become an Olympic athlete. Defying the stereotypes assigned to ultraOrthodox women, Beatie is a world-class athlete who is proud to share her beliefs and inspiration with people of all faiths and backgrounds. When the COVID pandemic derails her qualification for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, the trajectory of her career takes an unexpected turn. Beatie grapples with setbacks, injuries, and struggles with body image and an eating disorder. Will her single-minded pursuit to meet the Olympic qualifying standard extinguish her joy and passion for what she loves?
THE FUTURE AWAITS
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 7 • 3 PM
CEDAR LEE THEATRE
Director: Nils Tavernier, France, French with English subtitles, 2025, 93 minutes
The gripping story of 13-year-old Tauba and her Polish Jewish parents, who find refuge in a tiny room under the roofs of Paris during the Roundup of the Jews in July 1942. Living conditions are challenging, and each day merges into the next as they are in constant fear of being discovered. But while her parents sink further into despair, Tauba’s fighting spirit shines through. She finds joy in simple things, from a piano drawn on the floor, to marveling at the views of Paris through an open window. Despite the extreme circumstances of her daily life, she continues to hope for the liberation of Paris, and to gain control of her life. Based on a true story.
COMMUNITY PARTNER:
Sponsors: Debra S. Gold and Eileen Gold and Janet Stotter
Sponsors: Frayman Family IMO Roman Frayman DRAMA
ELIE WIESEL: SOUL ON FIRE
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 • 1 PM
CEDAR LEE THEATRE
Director: Oren Rudavsky, U.S., English/French/German, 2024, 87 minutes
Told largely through his own words and eloquent voice, Elie Wiesel: Soul on Fire seeks to penetrate to the heart of the known and unknown Elie Wiesel (1928-2016) – his passions, his conflicts and his legacy as one of the most public survivors of the trauma of the Holocaust. With unique access to personal archives, original interviews and hand painted animation, the film illuminates Wiesel’s biography as a father, survivor, writer, teacher and public figure.
THE OTHER
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 • 4 PM
CEDAR LEE THEATRE
Director: Joy Sela, English, Hebrew, and Arabic with English subtitles, 2024, 104 minutes
Filmed from 2017 to 2024, this film follows Israeli and Palestinian peace activists – humans fighting for the dignity and equality of all in the wake of deeply tragic personal loss. The film charts the complex history of the conflict through the October 7 attacks and subsequent violence. Reflective of its American-Israeli filmmaker’s own personal, transformative journey, it is a thoughtful, intellectually enriching film that communicates the possibility of change when one confronts the self as much as the beliefs of one’s society at large.
Warning: Some images may be disturbing. Community conversation, facilitated by The Prism Project will follow.
Sponsor: Norma Lerner
Sponsor:
THE RING
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 • 7:30 PM
CEDAR LEE THEATRE
Written and directed by: Adir Miller, Doron & Yoav Paz, Israel, Hebrew/Hungarian with English subtitles, 2024, 122 minutes
Arnon has a strong bond with his Holocaust survivor mother. He drives her to speak to high school students about how a gold ring miraculously saved her and her baby, Arnon. When Arnon’s mother’s health deteriorates, he travels to her town in Budapest to search for the mythological ring. He invites his estranged daughter, a researcher, to go on the journey together. A heart-warming dramedy about three generations and the family history that reconnects them. The Ring is based on the main actor Adir Miller’s Holocaust survival story.
THE STRONGHOLD
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 • 1 PM
CEDAR LEE THEATRE
Director: Lior Chefetz, Israel, Hebrew with English subtitles, 2024, 113 minutes
Set during the 1973 Yom Kippur War at an Israeli army outpost on the Suez Canal, the film follows a group of 42 Israeli soldiers who come under siege by the Egyptian army. With no rescue plan and casualties racking up, the group is put at odds between the commander, who insists they put up one final fight against the Arabs, and the visiting doctor (Michael Aloni) who believes surrender is the only path to survival. Produced in commemoration of the war’s 50th anniversary and based on real-life testimonies from Israeli soldiers, this stirring drama recounts a rarely-portrayed period in Jewish history with intensity and humanity.
Warning: War violence, blood and gore
Sponsors: Helen & Ronald Ross
Sponsors:
and
Roseanne & Michael Kadis
Ruthy Wolfson IMO Franny Goldlust
JANIS IAN: BREAKING SILENCE
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 • 4 PM
CEDAR LEE THEATRE
Director: Varda Bar-Kar, U.S., English, 2024, 111 minutes
At the young age of 13, Janis Ian began performing her original songs at New York City gigs alongside future legends including Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin, who jokingly called herself “the other Janis.” The precocious teenager, turned fearless singer-songwriter, built a career singing for the generation of American women who came of age in the 1960s and 1970s, discovering and voicing their power. With access to Janis Ian’s incredible body of music, her vast archive, family, friends, famed collaborators, and music journalists, this musical film, with the intimacy of a home movie set against a sweeping historical context – all through a contemporary lens.
ADA: MY MOTHER THE ARCHITECT
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 • 7:30 PM
CEDAR LEE THEATRE
DOCUMENTARY
Sponsors: Noreen Koppelman-Goldstein & Barry Goloboff and Beth & Brian Robbins
Director: Yael Melamede, Israel/U.S., English and Hebrew with English subtitles, 2024, 81 minutes
Ada Karmi Melamede is one of the most accomplished architects in the world, but very little is known about her outside her home country of Israel. The film is a deeply moving portrait of an extraordinary woman directed by her daughter, former architect Yael Melamede. Ada is a true pioneer who, like many successful working mothers of her time, was forced to make impossible choices. Despite personal sacrifices, Ada’s work gave physical form to some of Israel’s highest democratic ideals, including the Supreme Court building in Jerusalem, the Open University, Ben Gurion Airport and numerous other structures.
Meet the filmmaker after the screening.
DOCUMENTARY
Sponsor: Erica Hartman-Horvitz & Richard Horvitz
COMMUNITY PARTNER:
THE SPOILS
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10 • 1 PM
CEDAR LEE THEATRE
Director: Jamie Kastner, Canada, English and German with English subtitles, 2024, 104 minutes
The Spoils explores the debate over the rightful ownership of art plundered during World War II, centering on the case of Max Stern, a German-Jewish art dealer expelled from Düsseldorf in 1937. Stern became one of Canada’s most prominent art dealers, with his heirs leading efforts in art restitution. Chronicling the Düsseldorf City Museum’s failed attempt to host an exhibition in Stern’s honor, the film presents an eye-opening account of the heated disputes through a combination of interviews captured over a four- year period. The Spoils offers a gripping, poignant insight into the complex moral and legal dilemmas that continue to shape the art world today.
OF DOGS AND MEN
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10 • 4 PM
CEDAR LEE THEATRE
Director: Dani Rosenberg, Israel/Italy, Hebrew with English subtitles, 2024, 82 minutes
Shot on location in Kibbutz Nir Oz weeks after the assault, the film follows Dar, a teenager who survived the onslaught and returns home in search of her lost dog. Along the way, she meets kibbutz residents, soldiers, pathologists, volunteers and a teacher, all of whom are nonactors whose improvised conversations authentically capture their complex reactions to the violence in both Israel and Gaza. Caught between those intent on revenge and those committed to peace, the film offers a unique account of the impact of October 7 on the Israeli psyche. An intriguing blend of fiction and documentary exploring the aftermath of the October 7th attack.
Official Selection, 2024 Venice Film Festival
Sponsor: Heather Ross DRAMA
SABBATH QUEEN
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10 • 7:30 PM
CEDAR LEE THEATRE
Director: Sandi DuBowski, USA, English, Hebrew and Yiddish with English subtitles, 2024, 105 minutes
Filmed over 21 years, the story follows Rabbi Amichai Lau-Lavie’s journey as the heir of 38 generations of Orthodox rabbis including the Chief Rabbis of Israel. Torn between rejecting and embracing his destiny and he becomes a drag-queen rebel, a queer bio-dad and the founder of Lab/ Shul, an experimental congregation in New York. The film documents Amichai on a lifelong quest to creatively and radically reinvent religion and ritual, challenge patriarchy, champion interfaith love, and stand up for peace, ceasefire, and an end to the Occupation in Israel/Palestine.
Attention Young Adults: Meet up with community shilicha Ella Caspi for a happy hour before the film. RSVP to Ella at ecaspi@jewishcleveland.org.
DOCUMENTARY Sponsor: Margie Moskovitz Kanfer & Joe Kanfer
SHORTS PROGRAM
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 11 • 10 AM
CEDAR LEE THEATRE
JEWCE
Director: Tony Kim, USA, English, 2024, 23 minutes
The the real-life origin story of comic books and superheroes, created by pioneering Jewish Americans including Clevelanders Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster.
FIDDLER
ON THE MOON
Directors: Daniel A. Miller, Seth Kramer, Jeremy Newberger, USA, 2024, 29 minutes Finally, an answer to the question that has plagued scientists, theologians, and comedians for millennia: Will Judaism survive in space? Starring Neil deGrasse Tyson, astronauts Jeffrey Hoffman and Jessica Meir, and a quorum of rabbis and researchers.
THE WINDOWS ON RUE SAINT-DOMINIQUE
Director: Simcha Shtull, USA/Canada, English, 2025, 28 minutes
A filmmaker's quest to find 36 matching Star-of-David stained-glass windows that had disappeared from a Montreal egg warehouse, and the surprising discoveries that unfold along the way (including one in Beachwood, Ohio!).
Q&A with former Clevelander, Simcha Shtull, follows.
SHORTS
ART SPIEGELMAN: DISASTER IS MY MUSE
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 11 • 1 PM
CEDAR LEE THEATRE
Directors: Molly Bernstein and Philip Dolin, United States, English/Polish with English subtitles, 2024, 98 minutes
Born to Polish-Jewish immigrants, Spiegelman began cartooning at a young age, taking inspiration from MAD Magazine and Topps Company’s trading cards. With his groundbreaking publication of Maus, Art Spiegelman elevated the graphic novel to a serious art form that dealt with generational trauma and identity. The film traces his career from the 1960s, when he co-created Wacky Packages trading cards, through his co-founding of underground comics Raw and Arcade. It offers a portrait of an artist whose provocative work has influenced a new generation of writers.
Metropolis Grand Jury Prize, DOCNYC 2024
ONE BIG HAPPY FAMILY
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 11 • 4 PM
CEDAR LEE THEATRE
Director: Matt Sohn, USA, English, 2025, 82 minutes
Rachel is grappling with a looming mid-life crisis and the nervewracking task of delivering a speech at her daughter’s Bat Mitzvah. But when a DNA test unexpectedly reveals that she’s only half-Jewish and her beloved father isn’t her biological dad, Rachel’s life is thrown into a frenzy. Suddenly, she discovers new siblings of all backgrounds, and embarks on an adventure with her mother to find her “real” father. Through it all, Rachel uncovers a deeper understanding of who she truly is – a devoted mother, a passionate (and currently unemployed) actress, and, most importantly, her mother’s daughter.
DOCUMENTARY
Sponsor: Sally & Larry Sears
COMEDY Sponsor: Helene Diamond and Barbara & Michael Peterman
MATCHMAKING 2
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 11 • 7:30 PM
CEDAR LEE THEATRE
Director: Erez Tadmor, Israel 2024, 107 minutes, Hebrew with English subtitles
SODA
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 12 • 1 PM
MANDEL JCC, STONEHILL AUDITORIUM
Director: Erez Tadmor, Israel, Hebrew with English subtitles, 2024, 96 minutes
Baruch, a mature Yeshiva student who missed every opportunity to marry, is left to live in a small room in the Yeshiva where he studies and serves as the faithful assistant to matchmaker Malki. When Malki assigns him the task of escorting her young daughter Shira from the airport, he decides that it is time to get married. Baruch asks for Malki’s help, but when she tries to match him with Ruth (Niv Sultan), he decides to do everything he can to thwart the matchmaking with Ruth and win Shira’s heart. Only when he realizes how much he has misinterpreted the circumstances of his life will his heart open to the love he deserves.
Sequel to the 2022 Jaffe Audience Award Film, Matchmaking
When a beautiful seamstress, Eva, moves to a coastal kibbutz community of Holocaust survivors in 1956 Israel, rumors about her past as a Nazi collaborator shake up the neighborhood. Shalom (Lior Raz of Fauda), a former Partisan and community leader, is torn between his passion for Eva and his duty to uncover the truth about her past. Inspired by filmmaker Erez Tadmor’s grandfather’s life.
Sponsors: Esther & Jerry Spott and Susan & Eric Wasserman DRAMA
Sponsors: Brenda & David Goldberg
EID
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 13 • 9 PM
CLEVELAND INSTITUTE OF ART, CINEMATHEQUE
Director: Yousef Abo Madegem, Israel/France, Arabic with English subtitles, 2025, 90 minutes
HORA
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 14 • 10 AM
MANDEL JCC, STONEHILL AUDITORIUM
Director: Avi Weissblei, Israel, Hebrew & English subtitles, 2025, 60 minutes
Eid, a young man from Rahat with dreams of becoming a playwright, secretly writes a play based on the sexual assault he experienced as a child. He finds solace in a long-distance relationship with a married actress in Paris, but when his family arranges a marriage for him, his life takes an unexpected turn. Trapped between tradition and his own desires, Eid strikes a risky bargain with his new wife: a child in exchange for freedom. But when a trip to Paris to see his lover ends in disappointment, he must confront his past and find his own voice. Starring Shadi Mari who won an Israeli Academy Award for his role, this is the first feature film directed by a Bedouin filmmaker.
Sponsor: Heather Ross and Family IMO Jay Manas
One hundred years after the creation of the Hora dance, the film traces the dream of Israeli statehood. It is the story of the formation of the folk dance movement told through the voices of the women pioneers who brought diverse ethnic dances to Israel that helped shape modern Israeli culture. Will folk dancing remain, or will it become merely a relic of the past?
Join Stuart Meyer, Director, Dance Israeli, for folk dancing after the film.
The film will also be shown at the Chagrin Documentary FilmFest on Sunday, Oct 12.
SHORTS PROGRAM
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 14 • 1 AND 3 PM
MALTZ MUSEUM
THE STAGE IS OURS
Director: Matt Nadel, USA, English, 2023, 8 minutes Jewish actors, playwrights and directors gather at the Lyceum Theatre to reflect on the history of Jews and theatre.
THE HOLINESS
Director: Daniel Moreshet, Israel, Hebrew with English subtitles, 2025, 17 minutes
A religious couple, secretly indulge in a secular lifestyle behind closed doors. Their carefully constructed world shatters when their teenage daughter unexpectedly walks in on them watching TV on Shabbat.
TRACKS
Director: Maclovia Martel, USA/Netherlands, English, 2023, 11 min
A visual Journey of remembrance in Amsterdam.
WE HAVE SINNED BEFORE YOU
Director: Ifat Nener Orgad, Israel, Hebrew, 2024, 20 minutes
A game designed to pass the time on Yom Kippur, brings up secrets and difficulties that could tear the Dagan family apart.
THE SACRED SOCIETY
Director: Benny Zelkowicz, USA, English, 2024, 12 minutes
Illustrated with haunting sand animation, this short explores the importance of sacred ritual in helping us find meaning in our brief lives.
MAKING AWARENESS
Director: Susan Wasserman, USA, English, 2025, 7 minutes
Two Israeli street artists spread awareness to aid in the release of hostages taken on October 7, 2023.
RESTRAINING ORDER
Directors: Sharon Maymon, Tal Granit, Israel, Hebrew with subtitles, 2023, 8 minutes Dori issued a restraining order against her violent husband but she didn't imagine he would find a way to invade her peaceful home.
FRIDAY NIGHT FLOP
Directors: Simon Friedberg and Elliott Gerner, UK, English, 2024, 15 minutes
A mother is losing touch with her daughter in an age of digital distraction. But a turn of events sparks a new beginning.
Sponsors: Sally & Larry Sears
On Demand Streaming
TV SERIES KUGEL
STREAMING ON IZZY
Directed by Erez Kav-El, Israel, Hebrew, Yiddish with English subtitles, 2024, 42 minute episodes
The iconic Shtisel family returns in this delightful spin-off series that offers the backstory to Nuchem (Sasson Gabbay) and Libby. Set in Antwerp, Nuchem is a jewelry dealer whose unconventional business tactics (some might call it scheming) cost him his marriage and threaten his daughter’s marriage prospects.
Ticket is a FREE one-month subscription to the IZZY streaming service to stream all eight episodes. Access to IZZY will be sent to ticket purchasers via email.
MATCHMAKING
STREAM FOR FREE FROM SEPT 5-11 BEFORE THE MATCHMAKING 2 FILM
Director: Erez Tadmor, Israel, Hebrew/Yiddish with subtitles, 2022, 98 minutes
Witty and sweetly romantic, a Romeo-and-Juliet-like tale (minus the tragedy!) of two young, eligible ultra-Orthodox singles looking for a match. Moti spots Nechama, his sister’s friend, and is instantly smitten. He isn’t allowed to date her because she comes from a Mizrahi family not an Ashkenazi family like his own. Moti dates many beautiful girls, but against everything he knows, he finds he must pursue his one true love, Nechama.
Matchmaking was the Jaffe Audience Award at the 2023 Cleveland Jewish FilmFest.
Missed These Films at the Theater?
Stream them for $15 each. available for 48 hours
HONORING LOSS, RESILIENCE AND HEALING
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 5 • 11 AM • MANDEL JCC • FREE
HOME/LAND
Director: Adam Chitayat, US/Israel, Arabic, English, Hebrew with subtitles, 2025, 23 minutes
Months after October 7, an American/Israeli filmmaker follows peace activists, survivors, returned hostages, and Israeli-Palestinians, seeking to make sense of the unthinkable.
MAAIAN'S LETTER
Directors: Guy Hayout and Liran Kapel, Israel, Hebrew, 2024, 3 minutes
A memorial to Maayan Kalihman, an animation student at Minshar School of Art in Tel Aviv, who was murdered at the Nova music festival on October 7.
FINAL CHORD
Directors: Ruth Blory and Itai Osterman, Israel, Hebrew, 2024, 6 minutes
On October 7, Lily finds herself in a shelter, worried for her friend Keren, who had been at the Nova festival and is now unreachable.
GUYGU
Directors: Chen Heifetz and Jordan Barr, Israel, Hebrew, 2025, 7 minutes
The story of Guy Gilboa Dalal, told through the voices of his family, including memories of his childhood and the traumatic events of his abduction on October 7.
TORN
Director: Carol Isaacs, UK, English, 2024, 4 minutes
The unexpected battleground in London between pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli activists with the hostage posters caught up in the crossfire.
HOPE ON THE WATER
Director: Judy Herbstein, Israel, Hebrew with subtitles, 2024, 7 minutes
Intended to document the Pink Lionesses’ dragon boat competition, the event’s tragic overlap with the October 7 Hamas attack changed the course of their journey and the film.
RAVE
Director: Dor Eldar, Israel, 2024, 2 minutes
A dance recreation of the Nova Music Festival on October 7, 2023.
BUSH
Director: Elik Fromchenko, Israel, Hebrew with subtitles, 2024, 8 minutes
Using real sound and footage from the Nova festival on Oct 7. Maya hides in a bush from the terrorists and finds her way out using her imagination.
THE ONLY HOPE
Director: Paul Freeman, US/Israel, English, 2025, 28 minutes
In the aftermath of October 7, hundreds of Jewish youth from around the world visit Israel in a show of solidarity.
All films are free but registration is required.
Thank You to Our Sponsors
VENUE PARTNERS
The Prism Project
Thank You to Our Supporters
OPENING NIGHT SPONSOR
Harry K. & Emma R. Fox
Charitable Foundation
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
Cleveland Israel Arts Connection
Jennifer & Grant Dinner
Sally & Larry Sears
Heather Ross
PRODUCER
Frayman Family
– IMO Roman Frayman
Brenda & David Goldberg
Richard Horvitz &
Erica Hartman-Horvitz
Norma Lerner
Margie Moskowitz Kanfer & Joe Kanfer
Helen & Ronald Ross
OPENING NIGHT:
Popcorn Sponsor
Andria Cowan Young
Candy Sponsor
Gail & Ed Weintraub
LANYARD SPONSOR
Taft
DIRECTOR
Deborah & Howard Bobrow
IMO Jean Loeb Lettofsky
Mindy & Martin Davidson
Helene Diamond
Debra S. Gold and Eileen Gold
Sandra & Martin Horwitz
Roseanne & Michael Kadis
Noreen Koppelman-Goldstein
& Barry Goloboff
Alan Lettofsky
IMO Jean Loeb Lettofsky
Shelly & Scott Lewis
Barbara & Michael Peterman
Beth & Brian Robbins
Esther & Gerald Spott
Janet Stotter
Susan & Eric Wasserman
Ruthy Wolfson
IMO Fran Goldlust
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR
Faye & Michael Bass
Victor & Susan Bergman
Jerome Herman & Jan
Biederman
Susan & Daniel Borison
Phyllis & Ken Bravo
Tamar & Peter Brosse
Linda & Brad Demsey
Norm Friedman
Kathryn Gold Fox
Fran Lasky
Shelley & Greg Marcus
Lois Freedman & Mark Munetz
Anat & Saul Nurko
Carol & David Paley
Mila & Simon Rekhson
Elizabeth & Josh Sunshine
Connie Weil
SUPER STAR
Deedra Dolin
Ann Freimuth & Alan Goodman
Sandra & Steven Laserson
Marilyn & Kenneth Oif
Sallie Reider
Debbie & Ralph Rosenthal
Stephanie & Todd Silverman
Judy & Tom Spaulding
Amy Wain
STARS
Elaine Bercu
Marsha Blond
Maxine Cooper-Brand
Shelley & David Fishbach
Debbie Hoffman
Susan Michelson
Jessica Robins & Andrew Spott
Mikki & Michael Rocker
Ruthe Stone
Todah Rabah to the Jewish Federation’s Cleveland Israel Arts Connection for their generous support of this year’s Israeli film selections.
Cathy & Jonathan Stamler
Wish-Baratz Family
Natalie & Michael Zukerman
SUPPORTING CAST
Edna & Yair Akrish
Eunice & Roy Berko
Bonnie & Michael Cole
JACK & MINDA JAFFE
AUDIENCE AWARD
Dr. Jack✡ & Minda✡ Jaffe
FilmFest Committee
Co-Chairs
Sue Wish-Baratz
Janet Stotter
Elizabeth Sunshine
Edna Akrish
David Bardenstein
Faye Bass
Victor Bergman
Roy Berko
Maxine Brand
Kenneth Bravo
Tamar Brosse
Deedra Dolin
Shelley Fishbach
Lois Freedman
Ann Freimuth
Debby Gold
Alan Goodman
Debbie Hoffmann
Noreen KoppelmanGoldstein
Sandy Laserson
Shelly Meckler Lewis
Mike Milgrom
Tom Miller
Margie Moskovitz
Marilyn Oif
Carol Paley
David Paley
Michael Peterman
Sallie Reider
Mila Rekhson
Simon Rekhson
Jessica Robins
Debbie Rosenthal
Mark Sack
Esther Spott
Sonia Yungster
Natalie Zukerman
Past Co-Chairs:
Norm Friedman
Erica Hartman-Horvitz
Anat Nurko
Beth Robbins
Heather Ross
Sally Sears
Cathy Stamler
Susan Borin-Wasserman
26001 S. Woodland Road Beachwood, OH 44122
Bruce Rosenbaum, Board Chair
Jesse Rosen, President & CEO
Deborah Bobrow, Arts & Culture Manager
FILMFEST COMMITTEE
Co-chairs
Sue Wish-Baratz
Janet Stotter
Elizabeth Sunshine