Jewish Resilience Film and Media Series
Thursday, Apr 24, 2025
Thursday, April 24 – Sunday, April 27
Live at the Weitzman
Tickets On Sale March 25
The Jewish people have been persecuted, hated, and mocked for centuries, but they have endured. They have fought back. And they are NOT going anywhere.
PJFM’s first ever Jewish Resilience Film and Media Series explores the unwavering fortitude of the Jewish people through cinema and digital media. In an age of rising antisemitism across the globe on social media, in politics, and elsewhere, this new series celebrates the strength and survival of the Jewish people throughout history, from the Golden Age to post-October 7th.
The stories presented in the program, featuring everyday heroes and more, stand as beacons of hope for the future of the Jews and inspire everyone, regardless of identity, to stand up in the face of adversity.
Opening Night The Stronghold | Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History
April 24, 2025 at 7 PM
$18 General Admission
Directed by Lior Chefetz
Narrative Feature | Israel | 2023 | 113 min | Hebrew
PHILADELPHIA PREMIERE
Sinai Desert, Yom Kippur War, 1973. In a remote outpost, a company of Israeli soldiers are overwhelmed by a sudden Egyptian onslaught. After a week of ceaseless assaults, the survivors face imminent doom. With lives hanging by a thread, a young lieutenant and an army doctor confront a soul-shattering choice: a desperate last stand or a perilous gamble that could betray everything they stand for.
Preceded by A Great Big Secret
Directed by Yoav Potash
Documentary Short | USA | 2024 | 13 min | English
In this lovingly crafted profile, Dutch-born Holocaust survivor and retired teacher Anita Magnus Frank narrates her story from childhood trauma to adult healing, when she finally opened up to the world as one of World War II’s “hidden children,” dramatized with a collage-like combination of interviews, archival footage, and animation.
DIRECTOR’S BIO
Lior Chefetz is an award-winning writer/director whose films have screened in various film festivals around the world. His family adventure film, Sky Raiders (2019), won the Israeli Film Fund production grant, was produced by UCM-United Channels Movies, and released in Israeli theaters in summer 2019 by United King Films. Lior co-wrote The Doorman (2020), a female-driven action-thriller starring Ruby Rose (The Meg, Batwoman) and Jean Reno (Leon: The Professional) and directed by Ryûhei Kitamura (The Midnight Meat Train). For television, he wrote screenplays for The Cops (2021), a crime drama directed by Rotem Shamir (Fauda), season two of The Grave (2019), a sci-fi drama directed by Omri Givon (Hostages, When Heroes Fly), and Split (2015-16), a sitcom television series created by Daniel Lappin. Lior’s short film, The Godmother (2010), screened in 40 international film festivals, winning multiple awards including “Best Director” in the Shanghai International Film Festival, “Audience Award” in Beijing, First Look, “Best Film” in Methodfest, NYC Soho International, FirstGlance, and the Festivus Film Festival, to name a few. Lior’s Coca-Cola commercial Presto! was nominated for the Coca-Cola Refreshing Filmmaker’s Award. His other shorts, such as Night in Shenkin St. (2003) and Diesel Vampire (2013), became viral hits. Lior’s education includes a degree in graphic design and visual effects from Bezalel Academy of Arts & Design and MFA in directing from the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts.
Some.Body – A Nova Story | Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History
April 25-27, 2025
Free
Directed by Netanel Kafka
Exhibition Hours/Admission
- Friday, April 25 from 10 AM – 4 PM
- Saturday, April 26 from 10 AM – 4 PM
- Sunday, April 27 from 10 AM – 6 PM
*SOME.BODY – A NOVA STORY is included with admission to any Jewish Resilience Film and Media Series event, including general museum admission.
About the Project
This short feature film, combining original AI animation, spoken word, and trance music, is an adaptation of an award-winning short story by clinical psychologist and co-creator Dr. Nir Soffer-Dudek, written after bearing witness to dozens of testimonies from survivors of the Nova Music Festival massacre, as well as members of rescue forces who oversaw identification of the deceased.
Director’s Bio
Netanel Kafka is an Israeli-Czech multidisciplinary artist, theater, performance and film director, and stage lighting designer. Trained at the School of Visual Theater in Jerusalem and the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague, his work explores post-trauma through the combination of various art forms. In recent years, Netanel has been focusing on integrating AI and modern technology into artistic processes.
Theodore | Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History
April 25, 2025 at 2 PM
$15 General Admission | $13 Senior | $13 Student
Directed by Ido Ricklin
Narrative Feature | Israel | 2024 | 120 min | Hebrew
PHILADELPHIA PREMIERE
The Israeli Opera proudly presents THEODOR, an inspiring and visually captivating opera that delves into the life and origin story of Theodor Herzl, the visionary behind the modern State of Israel, and depicts how his experiences with rising antisemitism in Europe compelled him to recognize the necessity of a Jewish state. Composed by Yonatan Cnaan and directed by Ido Ricklin, this opera masterfully blends music, theater, and stunning visual elements to portray Herzl’s relentless quest for a Jewish belongingness.
Director’s Bio
Ido Ricklin was born in Israel and trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama in London. He has directed for all Israeli theatre companies, including Pains of Youth, Dancing at Lughnasa, and The Rose Tattoo for the Habimah National Theatre; Philadelphia Here I Come, Prelude to A Kiss, Bertha’s Piano, The Count of Monte Cristo, Much Ado About Nothing, Galileo, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and Ghosts for the Beer Sheva Theatre; Amy’s View, Day in the Death of Joe Egg, and Blackbird for the Cameri Theatre; The Heiress for Beit Lessin; As You Like It for the Mediatheque and Beit Lessin; Lovers, Whale Music, My Mother Said I Never Should, The Caucasian Chalk Circle, The Playboy of the Western World, The Devil’s General, The Swan, Tiger at the Gate, Bent, The Shortest Night of the Year, Fathers and Sons, Obsession, and Fantasy for the Library Theatre; A Midsummer’s Night Dream for the German National Theatre in Weimar; Scenes from an Execution for the Darmstadt Theatre; Romeo and Juliet for the Heidelberg Theatre; and the opera Baruchs Schweigen (Ella Milch-Sherriff) for the Bruanschweig Opera and in Israel. He has written numerous plays, including The Shortest Night of the Year, Obsession, Fantasy, The Count of Monte Cristo, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Emil and the Detectives, Double Lottie, The Flying Classroom, Momo, Heidi, and The Snow Queen. His stage version of The Count of Monte Cristo has won him the Israeli Theater Award for Best Production as playwright and director. Since 2018, he is the dramaturg of the Israeli Opera.
999: The Forgotten Girls | Streaming on PJFM On Demand
April 27-28, 2025
$20 General Admission
999 is available to streamy any time from April 27 (12 AM ET) until April 28 (11:59 PM ET)
Directed by Heather Dune Macadam
Documentary Feature | USA | 2023 | 90 min | English
PHILADELPHIA PREMIERE
Best-selling author and historian Heather Dune Macadam has adapted her acclaimed book, 999, into a powerful documentary that sheds light on a wrenching true story. In March 1942, nearly 1,000 young Slovak Jewish women, mostly teenagers, told by their government that they were embarking on a volunteer work assignment, were instead illegally deported to Auschwitz on what was the first Jewish transport to the Nazi death camp. Rather than strictly focus on the suffering and death experienced by most of the girls, Macadam tells stories of a small group who survived against all odds, even under unimaginable conditions that lasted more than three grueling years.
Director’s Bio
Heather Dune Macadam has spent over 20 years researching and interviewing families, witnesses, and survivors of the first official transport to Auschwitz. Her internationally acclaimed book, 999 (published in 2020), has been translated into 18 languages and was a Pen Finalist in 2021. Macadam’s first book, Rena’s Promise, co-written with Holocaust survivor #1716 Rena Kornreich Gelissen, is required reading in history classes around the world. In 2011, she founded Rena’s Promise Foundation in the hopes of helping to create a more ecumenical world unhindered by prejudice, racism, or hatred. Macadam’s work discovering lost girls and young women of the Holocaust has been recognized by Yad Vashem in the UK, the National Museum of Jewish History in Slovakia, and the Memorial Museum of Auschwitz in Poland. A former professor, she has taught journalism and creative nonfiction for over 20 years. 999: THE FORGOTTEN GIRLS is her directorial debut.
The Community | Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History
April 27, 2025 at 4 PM
$15 General Admission | $13 Senior | $13 Student
Directed by Alex Osmolovsky
Documentary Feature | Israel/Ukraine | 2025 | 65 min | Ukrainian, Russian, Hebrew
US PREMIERE
A portrait of Jewish life in Ukraine today in the mirror of history and the shadow of Russia’s full-scale invasion, THE COMMUNITY captures the strength and resilience of Ukraine’s diverse Jewish community as they navigate the hardships of war. Through personal stories and interviews with a range of characters, the film reveals their essential role in Ukraine’s struggle and explores their experiences amidst accusations of Nazism that have cast a shadow over the nation.
Director’s Bio
Alex Osmolovsky is an award-winning director with more than 10 years of experience and driven by his pure love for cinema and shooting. He started his career as a producer and worked with all the major broadcasters and advertising agencies. After several years as a producer, he moved to the director’s chair and since then has directed several feature film, shorts, and commercials. In 2022, Alex won three awards for best director at international film festivals. He has wide experience working abroad with an international and diverse crew and various clients. Currently, he is working on a future film, drama show, and directing commercials.
TORN | Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History
April 27, 2025 at 6 PM
$20 General Admission
Directed by Nim Shapira
Documentary Feature | USA | 2024 | 75 min | English
PHILADELPHIA PREMIERE
TORN delves into the controversy surrounding the ‘KIDNAPPED’ poster campaign, a grassroots effort to raise awareness about the 240 hostages taken by Hamas. These posters quickly became polarizing symbols, sparking intense clashes between pro-Israel and pro-Palestine activists and turning New York City’s streets into battlegrounds of ideology and emotion. The film explores the motivations behind activists putting up and tearing down the posters, unraveling the complexities of this intense ‘paper arm’ proxy war, fought thousands of miles from the actual conflict.
Preceded by ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE
Directed by Nate Berman
Documentary Short | USA | 2024 | 5 min | English
ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE profiles the Cinderella story of Blake Peters, the lone Jewish player on the 2023 Princeton University basketball team who led them to the 2023 NCAA Sweet 16 and then struggled to navigate campus antisemitism after the events of Oct 7 only seven months later.
SPECIAL GUESTS:
- Rabbi Abe Friedman (Moderator)
- Dede Bandaid and Nitzan Mintz (Street Artists (Interviewees)
- Nim Shapira (Director of TORN)
- Aaron Terr (FIRE, Public Advocacy Director (Interviewee)
- Alana Zeitchik (Hostage Family Member (Interviewee)
Director’s Bio
Nim Shapira is an award-winning filmmaker, creative director, and multidisciplinary artist based in Brooklyn. His work has been featured at prestigious festivals such as TED, Tribeca Film Festival, Cannes’ Marché du Film, SIGGRAPH, and Slamdance. Nim is a graduate of La Biennale di Venezia’s College Cinema and a former research fellow at MIT’s Open Documentary Lab. He has led award-winning campaigns for brands like Coca-Cola and Nike.
Closing Night Four Winters | Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History
April 28, 2025 at 7 PM
$18 General Admission
Directed by Julia Mintz
Documentary Feature | USA | 2022 | 90 min | English
PHILADELPHIA PREMIERE
Over 25,000 Jewish partisans fought back against the Nazis and their collaborators from deep within the forests of WWII’s Eastern Europe, Ukraine and Belarus. Against extraordinary odds, they escaped Nazi slaughter, transforming from young innocents to courageous resistance fighters. Shattering the myth of Jewish passivity, these last surviving partisans tell their stories of resistance in FOUR WINTERS, revealing a stunning narrative of heroism and resilience.
Preceded by NEW LIVES
Directed by Joey Schweitzer
Narrative Short | USA | 2023 | 20 min | Polish, English
A Holocaust survivor navigates the delicate balance between assimilating to her new American identity and reckoning with her traumatic past in 1950s Brooklyn.
SPECIAL GUESTS:
- Randi Boyette (Moderator)
- Julia Mintz (Director of FOUR WINTERS)
Director’s Bio
Julia Mintz‘s work focuses on narratives of bravery and resistance against unimaginable odds. She has been on the producing teams for films which have been shortlisted for the Academy Awards, premiered at Cannes, Sundance and Tribeca, and won Emmy, Peabody and festival awards. Her films can be seen on Max, PBS, American Masters, Netflix, and Amazon and are shown on college campuses across the country. She has taught seminars and workshops worldwide and held an adjunct faculty position at LIU in NYC. Julia has been a featured keynote and guest speaker for engagements in both the public and private sectors. She is an award-winning artist and accomplished multi-grant recipient for her work in visual arts and documentary film.
This program is presented by Philadelphia Jewish Film + Media. Please contact info@phillyjfm.org with any questions.
