L IFESTYLE /C ULTURE
Film Fest Returns In-Person With New Mission
FI L M
SASHA ROGELBERG | JE STAFF
THOSE MISSING the buttery
taste of movie theater popcorn
fi nally have the chance to
nosh on their favorite cinema
snacks once more, as in-person
screenings return for the 41st
Annual Philadelphia Jewish
Film Festival: Fall Fest.

Presented by Philadelphia
Jewish Film and Media,
formerly the Gershman
Philadelphia Film Festival,
the fi lm festival will run from
Nov. 7-20, with both in-person
screenings and virtual on-de-
mand streaming options.

In addition to the in-person
screenings of nine fi lms, PJFM
will off er 22 weeklong on-de-
mand screenings both weeks
of the festival and select virtual
livestreams. PJFM’s fi rst hybrid fi lm
festival isn’t the only thing
diff erentiating this year’s Fall
Fest from its predecessors.

“We’ve changed a lot in the
past year,” said Olivia Antsis,
PJFM’s executive artistic
director. PJFM’s new name, with
the intentional addition of the
word “media,” better refl ects
the trending interest in multi-
media cinema and art that
branches off from the tradi-
tional fi lm format.

“Th e advent of social media
and video sharing platforms
like YouTube and Tik Tok has
made it possible for anyone
with access to a smartphone
and an internet connection
to create content and share it
across the globe,” Antsis said.

Besides feature-length
fi lms, the Fall Fest will show
short fi lms and the second
annual New Media Day,
an opportunity to sample
multimedia Jewish digital
storytelling, which was created
last year as a way to adapt
to the virtual restrictions of
the pandemic. Last year’s event
was a “resounding success,”
JEWISHEXPONENT.COM “American Birthright,” a documentary about interfaith marriage, will
screen on Nov. 10 at 7 p.m. as part of Young Friends Night.

“Wet Dog” tells the story of an Iranian Jewish boy in Berlin who joins a
gang with antisemitic members.

according to Antsis, and had
nearly 1,000 attendees.

Along with the festival
format and its offerings
changing, the content of the
fi lms will also diff er, featuring
stories of Jews from across the
globe, and even some stories
from non-Jewish perspectives.

Th e decision to expand
PJFM’s programming came
from the feedback of more
than two dozen Jewish movie
lovers who felt that Jewish
fi lm needed to be as diverse as
the Jewish community it was
meant to serve.

“Th ere was a hunger for fi lms
that off ered new and diverse
perspectives on some of the
common themes and topics
explored at Jewish fi lm festivals
around the world,” Antsis said.

Antsis is looking forward
to audiences viewing “200
Meters,” the story of a
Palestinian man in his struggle
to visit his son, who is just 200
meters away, but on the other
side of an Israeli checkpoint.

“Wet Dog” also provides a
unique point of view, Antsis
said, as the fi lm depicts an
Iranian Jew’s experience in a
predominantly Muslim area
of Berlin, where he runs into
and joins a gang with members
spewing antisemitic beliefs.

“One of the most valuable
gift s fi lm festivals can off er
to their audiences is the
a lot of younger people here in
Philly that haven’t even heard
of us, and we really feel like we
can change that.”
During Fall Fest, PJFM will
host a Young Friends Night
on Nov. 10 at 7 p.m. at the
National Museum of American
Jewish History for a screening
of “American Birthright,”
a documentary about the
fi lmmaker’s journey — both
physical and spiritual — to
Israel, as she explores the idea
of interfaith marriage aft er her
sister marries a non-Jew.

Following the screening,
Young Friends members are
invited to attend a happy hour
with documentary director
Becky Tahel Bordo.

“American Birthright” is a
fi lm for all audiences, Bussy
said, but its light-hearted
nature and generationally-rele-
vant topic make it a good fi t for
Photos courtesy of Philadelphia Jewish Film and Media
opportunity to broaden their
worldview and increase empathy
and understanding,” Antsis said.

PJFM believes that a
diversity in fi lm content will
attract a diversity of audience
members, hoping to draw
in younger crowds who may
not be familiar with the fi lm
festival. Over the summer, PJFM
launched Young Friends, an
initiative for Jewish young
professionals, creatives and
movie lovers aged 21-39 to
become more involved in
Jewish fi lm events. Young
Friends off ers viewings, movie
discounts and special events.

“ We ’r e
actua lly
Philadelphia’s fi rst fi lm festival;
we’re the second-longest-run-
ning Jewish fi lm festival in
the country,” said Matt Bussy,
PJFM’s program and digital
marketing manager. “Th ere’s
Young Friends members.

“Young people, especially
aft er the year we’ve had, just
want to have a good time,”
Bussy said. “Th ey want to meet
new people; they want to watch
entertaining fi lms that are
perceptive and well done, but
also just fun.”
Proof of COVID vaccination
with a vaccine card or photo of
a card is required for in-person
screenings. Masks are required
inside, and there is limited
capacity in the theaters.

Tickets for individual
events are $15, and all-access
passes are $180 for in-person
and virtual screenings, $140
for virtual-only screenings
and $40 for New Media Day.

For more information, visit
phillyjfm.org. ●
srogelberg@jewishexponent.com; 215-832-0741
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