2025 Film Festival Schedule
Sponsors & Pass Holders (Only) Opening Reception
5:30 – 6:30PM
At the newly remodeled Adam Bronfman JCC 524 Chapala Street
Mini deli themed gourmet appetizers, pickle martini, live music by Mike Holland!
All Movie Programs & Screenings are held at the Adam Bronfman JCC this year
SHOWTIME: 7:00PM
Once Upon My Mother (drama)
Director Ken Scott
2025 | 1hr 42m
In 1963, Esther gave birth to Roland, the youngest sibling of a large family. Roland was born with a clubfoot that prevented him from standing.
Against everyone’s advice, she promised her son that he would be able to walk just like everyone else and have a wonderful life.
From that moment on, Esther devoted herself fully to ensuring this promise came true.
Spanning decades of hardships and miracles, this film is the story of an incredible destiny and the greatest love of all: a mother’s love for her child.
10:00AM – 10:30AM
Coffee & Bagels
Childcare & Kids Movie in Back Conference Room
SHOWTIME: 10:30AM + special guest
precede w/short: Last Jews of Guantanamo (13 min)
Mazel Tov (comedy)
Director Adrián Suar
Argentina | 97 MINUTES | 2024 / Spanish
From acclaimed Argentinean actor and director Adrián Suar comes a heartfelt, humorously touching tale of family, forgiveness, and the ties that bring us back home. When Dario Roitman returns from the U.S. to Argentina for a family wedding and Bat Mitzvah, he anticipates the usual family drama. But his carefully laid plans for a family reunion are suddenly upended when he learns, just hours before his flight, that his father has passed away.
As the Roitmans gather for the funeral, old wounds resurface and longstanding tensions reach a boiling point. Despite the emotional turmoil, Dario remains determined to celebrate both the wedding and Bat Mitzvah, even if it means challenging tradition and risking further discord. Navigating grief, sibling rivalry, and delightfully eccentric grudges, the Roitmans reveal the messy yet enduring love of family. With humor, heart, and a touch of dysfunction, Mazel Tov captures the bittersweet hilarity of coming home—and the strength it takes to forgive, let go, and find joy amid the tears.
SHOWTIME: 1:00PM
Shoshana (drama)
Director Michael Winterbottom
UK | 121 MINUTES | 2023
Set in 1938 to 1942/44, the film takes place in Tel Aviv, where tensions are high as the British, under their League of Nations mandate, attempt to maintain order in a city with a mixed Arab and Jewish population. Thomas Wilkin, a British deputy superintendent of the Palestinian police, becomes romantically involved with Shoshana, the daughter of Ber Borochov, a co-founder of the Zionist labor movement.
SHOWTIME: 3:30PM
Soul of A Nation (doc)
Director Jonathan Jakubowicz
USA-Israel | 2025 | 105 MINUTES | English and Hebrew with English subtitles
The first great documentary of 2025, Soul of a Nation is an inspiring and eye-opening film that delves into Israel’s most perilous chapter in recent history, a time of profound internal conflict and external danger. Faced with deep divides, political unrest, and tremendous threats, the nation found itself shaken and on the brink of collapse. But amid this crisis, triggered by the horrific October 7 attack—the deadliest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust—a profound and inspiring transformation took place. What seemed like a breaking point ignited an extraordinary movement of solidarity, uniting Israelis in ways never before seen.
SHOWTIME: 6:30PM
Pink Lady (drama)
Director Nir Bergman
Israel, Italy | 104 MINUTES | 2024
Battie and Lazer, a young Jewish ultra-Orthodox couple receive an unmarked envelope with pictures of Lazer kissing another man. He tells her that the pictures are fabricated and that he is blackmailed by the Wolf’s gang who are terrorizing the ultra-Orthodox community. Unfortunately for Battie this is only partially true. Lazer is indeed blackmailed but he is also indeed gay. Both are going to fight Wolf’s gang in a journey that will test their love and faith and change their lives forever.
9:30AM – 10:00AM
Coffee & Bagels
Coffee sponsored by Carpinteria Starbucks
SHOWTIME: 10:00AM
The Property (rom com)
Director Dana Modan
Israel, Poland | 108 MINUTES | 2025
Regina and her granddaughter Mika embark on a journey to Poland to reclaim their family property seized during World War II. But their quest quickly unravels and Regina seizes the opportunity to pursue her own hidden agenda: finding her long-lost love, from whom she was separated seventy years ago.
SHOWTIME: 1:00PM
precede with short: Sacred Society
Marathon Mom (doc)
Directors Rebecca Shore & Oren Rosenfeld
Israel | 90 MINUTES | 2025
Marathon Mom follows Beatie’s journey as she strives to race in the Olympic Games.
Suddenly cast into the spotlight as a representative of the entire Jewish people, how will Beatie handle the pressure? Can she still be a good wife and mother? Can she stay true to her values as an orthodox Jewish woman? Is her ambition really enough to make it to the elite level of Olympic Marathon runners and achieve the qualifying time of 2:29:30?
To quote Beatie, “Life is so much more than winning races or becoming famous … the only thing that truly defines us is the choices we make to expand our self, At the end of my life, that’s the only thing I’m going to take with me. I’m here to develop my soul to its fullest.”
In Marathon Mom, we watch her race to do just that.
RSVP Required, $89.00 Passholders/ $118.00 Non-Passholders
5:30 PM Prix Fixe Steak Dinner at Etty’s Deli! Includes beverage pairing & sides. Salmon or Vegetarian options available.
SHOWTIME: 7:00PM, With Special Guest Matt Lieberman. Followed by Champagne Toast!
Generously Sponsored by Joy & Doug Maskart
precede with short: Moshe Sneh The Man (14 mins)
Centered: Joe Lieberman (doc)
Director Jonathan Gruber
USA | 77 MINUTES | 2024
Centered brings to life the remarkable journey of Joe Lieberman, the late Senator who made history as the first Jewish Vice Presidential candidate—and nearly changed the course of American politics. Ever a trailblazer, Lieberman was known for his humor, his independence, and for prioritizing what he believed to be right — sometimes earning the ire of his longtime colleagues.
In an era where the political divide seems wider than ever, Lieberman’s story is more urgent and relevant every day. The film explores his life and career in ways that challenge us to think about the future of democracy and how we can find ways to work together, no matter our differences.
SHOWTIME: 9:30AM, 97 MINUTES
Shorts Program
American & Orthodox, Tree of Oriya (10/7), Fiddler Moon, Matzoh Balls
SHOWTIME: 12:15PM, 120 Minutes Total Program | J Cafe Lunch Special at Etty’s Deli 11:30am
precede with shorts: Escape: The True Story of Morris Schnitzer (21 mins) & The Whistle (7.5 mins)
The Shoshani Riddle (drama)
Director Michael Grynszpan
Israel | 86 MINUTES | 2023 | English, Hebrew, French (Subtitles)
He was one of the greatest geniuses that ever lived; a teacher, a scholar, a mathematician – he had a brilliant mind… and yet he slept on a park bench, had no real home, travelled the world, looked like a bum and ate like a slob. No one knows his real name; he is only known as Mr. Shoshani. He was an eternal nomad, a mad genius, who attracted disciples such as Nobel Prize winner Elie Wiesel and renowned philosopher Emmanuel Levinas.
He was fluent in 30 languages, knew philosophy, physics, economics, biology, Kabbalah and other disciplines. With no family or friends, wandering homeless in shabby clothes, taking on multiple names and identities, he acquired a mythological status – some claim he was merely a legendary figure. How did he acquire his extensive knowledge? What was his world view? What was his secret?
Mr. Shoshani (or “Monsieur Chouchani” in French) is one of the unsolved riddles of the twentieth century and one of the ten most mysterious men ever. This is his story.
SHOWTIME: 2:30PM
precede with short: We Have Sinned Here Before (20 mins)
Losing My Religion (doc)
Director Noa Aharoni
Israel | 120 MINUTES | Hebrew Subtitles
This documentary film follows three young people, each debating whether to leave the Ultra-Orthodox way of life and embark on a new secular path. Though they are of different background, age and family status, and diverse Ultra-Orthodox sects, they all share one thing: the desire to be free and have the right to choose – what will their lives look like? What will they believe? How will they dress? And how will they co-exist with their Orthodox families and past?
SHOWTIME: 4:30PM – with Special Guests Dan Sturman & Gary Gilbert
The Stamp Thief (doc)
Director Dan Sturman
USA, Germany, Poland | 100 MINUTES | 2025 | English, Polish, German
Gary Gilbert, a Hollywood writer-producer with time and money to spare, brings a film crew to Poland to make a movie. But underneath this ruse lies an ulterior motive—to recover stamps stolen by a Nazi officer during the Holocaust and return them to their rightful heirs.
Part detective story, part heist film, part untold history, THE STAMP THIEF investigates a tale dating back to the Holocaust—a mysterious Nazi stole priceless stamp collections from concentration camp victims and buried the stolen stamps in a small town in Poland. Embarking on a real-life “Argo”-like adventure, one-time Seinfeld producer Gary Gilbert sets out to confirm the story and recover the stamps. His tactic: a fake movie shoot. His goal: to return the stamps to their rightful owners, hopefully delivering a small measure of justice more than 70 years after the Holocaust.
SHOWTIME: 10:00AM
Halisa (drama)
Director Sophie Artus
Israel | 2024 | 102 MINUTES | Hebrew with English subtitles
A beautiful, emotionally complex Israeli drama unfolds as a nurse longing for her own child becomes entwined in a young mother’s crisis, leading to a risky decision with life-altering ramifications. In her 40s, single, and facing infertility, Sarah works at a health center in Halisa, a multiethnic, impoverished Haifa neighborhood. When she treats Anya, a young mother in dire circumstances, an unexpected bond forms. Anya, desperate, leaves her baby with Sarah and disappears, forcing both women to confront painful realities and a chance to give each other what they need most. With earnest performances by Noa Koler and Dana Berkovich, this sympathetic portrayal of motherhood and sacrifice was nominated for five Israeli Academy Awards, including Best Film, Best Actress, and Best Supporting Actress.
SHOWTIME: 2:00PM
East & West: 1923 silent film set to live music duo
(Set to live original music by world renowned violinist Alicia Svigals and celebrated pianist Donald Sosin)
Director Ivan Abramson and Sydney M Goldin
Austria | 1923 | 90 MINUTES
East and West is a 1923 Austrian comedy. Molly Picon, a feisty young New Yorker, goes to a family wedding in Europe and gets into all kinds of mischief, coaxing the Yeshiva boys to dance the Shimmy, and acting in a fake wedding to a nebbish Talmudic student, which turns out to have some serious consequences.
Special thanks to The Sunrise Foundation for Education and the Arts
SHOWTIME: 4:30PM
Live music by Kalinka
SHOWTIME: 5:00PM
precede with short: Mahjong & Mahashas (15 mins)
SWEDISHKAYT: YidLife Crisis in Stockholm (comedy)
Directors Eli Batalion & Jamie Elman
Canada & Sweden | 77 MINUTES | 2025
Get ready to laugh and kvell with Swedishkayt: YidLife Crisis in Stockholm as self-proclaimed international Yiddish-ish icons YidLife Crisis—comedy duo Eli Batalion and Jamie Elman—bravely step onto Swedish soil to unearth a hidden treasure trove of Jewish culture. From the moment they arrive in Stockholm, our heroes, like gefilte fish out of water, prepare for a big live show while unraveling the little-known history of Sweden’s Jewish community in their hilarious and heartfelt journey.
Through meshugenah encounters and eye-opening revelations, they explore tales spanning 250 years, from the earliest Jewish immigrants to discovering how Yiddish, an almost forgotten language, became a protected government-recognized language in Sweden—yes, THAT Sweden! Along the way, they dive into a cultural revival that’s as unexpected as it is joyous.
Swedishkayt: YidLife Crisis in Stockholm is 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. It is a love letter to Jewish happiness, unity, and the delightful discoveries waiting just beyond our comfort zones. With their unique blend of humor and heart, Eli & Jamie also remind us that sometimes the most exciting connections pop up where you least expect them—and that Jewish joy is truly universal!
SHOWTIME: 10:00AM – with Special Guest Director, James Freedman
Charles Grodin: Rebel with a Cause
Director James L. Freedman
USA | 93 MINUTES | 2025 | English
Charles Grodin’s extraordinary life and career as an actor-comedian and broadcast personality take center stage in this rich and multifaceted portrait of a consummate performer who infused humor with heart. A master of dry wit and deadpan delivery, Grodin captivated audiences with beloved performances in The Heartbreak Kid, Midnight Run, and countless sharp-witted late-night TV appearances. In his later years, Grodin quietly turned his focus to champion meaningful causes, using his platform as CNBC talk show host to advocate for justice and pressing social issues. Through a treasure trove of film and TV clips, insightful interviews, and heartfelt reflections, this vibrant tribute remembers a singular talent who left an indelible mark on both entertainment and humanity.
SHOWTIME: 2:00PM
precede with short: My Two Lives (15 mins)
With Special Guest Actress, Mindy Sterling!
Ethan Bloom (comedy)
Director Herschel Faber
USA | 95 MINUTES | 2025
A coming-of-age comedy about a teen who wrestles with loss, spiritual identity, and first love.
5:30PM
Sponsors & Pass Holders (Only) Closing Reception
Dessert and wine reception
At the newly remodeled Adam Bronfman JCC 524 Chapala Street
SHOWTIME: 7:00PM
Closing Comments + Awards + Q&A with Special Guest Abby Ginzberg, Director
Labors of Love: The Life and Legacy of Henrietta Szold (doc)
Director Abby Ginzberg
USA | 79 MINUTES | 2025 | English & Hebrew w/ subtitles
Henrietta Szold is among the most influential American Jewish women who ever lived. She founded Hadassah in 1912, a Jewish women’s service organization, that inspired hundreds of thousands of Jewish women to invest their energies in a cause that transcended their own personal lives. She became a major force in the early twentieth century in Palestine: she established its health care system, treating Jews and Arabs equally, shaped its education system and initiated social services that prevail today. In a crowning achievement, Szold helped organize Youth Aliyah, which successfully rescued thousands of Jewish children from Germany and Nazi-occupied Europe during the 1930s and transported them to Palestine.