Washington Jewish Film Festival May 11–21 2023
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Washington DC’s Edlavitch Jewish Community Center sponsors the annual JxJ Festival, featuring music, films, and a variety of talks, discussions, and resources for the arts. This year’s film program is spectacular. Some of the highlights:
June Zero: The opening night film is directed by Jake Paltrow (brother of Gwyneth, son of director Bruce). This is the story of the 1961 trial of Adolf Eichmann, the architect of the mass murder of the Jews during World War II. Based on true events, this film follows the lives of three unlikely characters: Eichmann’s Jewish Moroccan prison guard, an Israeli police investigator, and a 13-year-old Jewish Libyan immigrant. It will be followed by a Q&A with director Jake Paltrow and producers Ron Goldman and Oren Moverman.
Kosher Rehab: When members of a Hassidic community need help for substance abuse, their rehab experience has to provide the right environment for them. This documentary follows 15 patients and their leader, a former addict, over their 18 months in treatment.
Queen of the Deuce: Once there was a Jewish grandmother who was also a lesbian and the owner of most of the porn theaters in New York. This is her story.
Signals: A young woman from a dysfunctional family thinks her best hope is contacting aliens in this short film.
A Still Small Voice: A young Jewish chaplain is followed in a documentary about her residency in a hospital. The title is a reference to the Bible: I Kings 19:12, where Elijah hears “after the fire, a still small voice.”
