In Person EventLindy SpringFest (March 25 – April 1)
Saturday, Apr 1, 2023
<span class="TextRun MacChromeBold SCXW220305803 BCX0" lang="EN-US" xml:lang="EN-US" data-contrast="none"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW220305803 BCX0">Join us at The Weitzman for Philadelphia Jewish Film and Media's (PJFM) Lindy SpringFest. Throughout the week, we'll host nine exciting and carefully curated films </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW220305803 BCX0" lang="EN-US" xml:lang="EN-US" data-contrast="none"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW220305803 BCX0">which engage with Jewish culture and values. See below for more information. </span></span>
<strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">OPENING NIGHT</span></strong>
<strong><em><b>MARCH ’68</b> - </em><a href="https://phillyjfm.org/event/march-68/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Click Here for Tickets</a></strong>
<em>Saturday, March 25 at 7:30pm</em>
<img class="wp-image-3606 alignleft" src="https://theweitzman.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/thumbnail_MARCH-68-HR-Pic-7.jpg" alt="" width="296" height="148" />
Beautifully filmed with hip music and superb performances, <b>MARCH ’68 </b>is a timeless love story, a tale of romance jeopardized by a messy array of governmental beliefs and diatribes. Director Krzysztof Lang takes a magnifying glass to post-WWII Poland and brilliantly shows the tumult of the late 60s, a decade of anger, injustice, and courage from its citizens, just people hoping to move on with their lives.
<hr />
<strong><em>TH<b>E PRINCE OF EGYPT: 25<sup>th</sup> Anniversary Screening </b>-</em> <a href="https://phillyjfm.org/event/the-prince-of-egypt/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Click Here for Tickets</a></strong>
<em>Sunday, March 26, at 11:00am</em>
<img class="wp-image-3607 alignleft" src="https://theweitzman.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/THE-PRINCE-OF-EGYPT-HR-Pic-3-1-1366x768.jpg" alt="" width="284" height="160" />
The Oscar-winning box office hit of the late 90s, the kids' movie musical that moved audiences worldwide, the “Passover movie” of all Passover movies…is returning to the big screen! In this family-friendly event – just two weeks before Passover – PJFM encourages all children and parents to come early for this special 25th-anniversary screening, featuring arts and crafts, food, and storytime. Singing is encouraged but not required!
<hr />
<em><strong><b>THE CITY WITHOUT JEWS: Silent Film with Live Music Score</b> - </strong></em><a href="https://phillyjfm.org/event/the-city-without-jews/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Click Here for Tickets</strong></a>
<em>Sunday, March 26 at 8:00pm</em>
<img class="wp-image-3608 alignleft" src="https://theweitzman.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/thumbnail_The-City-of-Jews-Image-for-film-page.png" alt="" width="247" height="139" />
2024 will mark the 100<sup>th</sup> anniversary of <b>THE CITY WITHOUT JEWS</b>¸ H.K. Breslauer’s phenomenal silent film that has engrossed audiences across the globe. In this grand event, PJFM brings this classic to the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History with LIVE original music composed and performed onstage by world-renowned klezmer violinist Alicia Svigals and silent film pianist Donald Sosin. Come and be amazed by this long-lost classic of silent cinema while listening to the spectacular musical duo!
<hr />
<em><strong><b>BERENSHTEIN</b> - </strong></em><a href="https://phillyjfm.org/event/berenshtein/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Click Here for Tickets</strong></a>
<em>Monday, March 27 at 7:00pm</em>
<img class="wp-image-3609 alignleft" src="https://theweitzman.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/thumbnail_BERENSHTEIN-HR-Pic-7.jpg" alt="" width="296" height="124" />
As commander of a partisan battalion, Leonid Berenshtein helped locate and thwart Hitler’s “wonder weapon,” the dictator’s V2 missile development facility, at the height of the Second World War. Years later, Berenshtein, a frail, elderly man in his final years, bravely recounts his time in the battalion. From fighting Nazis in the cold forests of Eastern Europe to rescuing Jewish prisoners behind enemy lines, the memories are as vivid to him as if they were from yesterday.
<hr />
<em><strong><b>VALERIA IS GETTING MARRIED – Encore Screening</b> </strong></em><strong>-<a href="https://phillyjfm.org/event/valeria-is-getting-married-encore/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em> </em>Click Here for Tickets</a></strong>
<em>Tuesday, March 28, 2:00pm</em>
<img class="wp-image-3610 alignleft" src="https://theweitzman.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/thumbnail_VALERIA.jpg" alt="" width="252" height="142" />
When a smiley, carefree Ukrainian woman arranges for her younger sister to marry an Israeli man and start her life anew, trepidation fills the room for the soon-to-be bride. Is this arranged marriage a blessing in disguise or a disaster waiting to happen? <b>VALERIA IS GETTING MARRIED </b>has astounded audiences and critics across the globe with its tense setting, intelligent writing, and top-notch performances from its minimal cast. Writer/director Michal Vinik has created a powerful tale of two women willing to decide for themselves and not fall victim to society’s demands.
<hr />
<em><strong><b>SHTTL – Encore Screening</b> </strong></em><strong>- </strong><a href="https://phillyjfm.org/event/shttl-encore/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Click Here for Tickets</strong></a>
<em>Wednesday, March 29 at 7:00pm</em>
<img class="wp-image-3611 alignleft" src="https://theweitzman.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/SHTTL-HR-Pic-2-1-1366x572.jpg" alt="" width="286" height="120" />
The year is 1941, and although Nazi Germany has yet to take over Soviet Ukraine, there is already chaos and distrust in one particular shtetl. The gossip of a potential Nazi invasion is overshadowed by constant clashing between Hasidic Jews and communist supporters. Unbeknownst to these people, their chance to make amends with their neighbors’ differences may be too late. Filmed in one continuous shot in breathtaking black-and-white, Ady Walter’s directional debut is one of the year's most hypnotic, haunting, and positively spellbinding films.
<hr />
<b><em>ONLY IN THEATERS – Encore Screening</em> <strong><em>- </em><a href="https://phillyjfm.org/event/only-in-theaters-encore/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Click Here for Tickets</a></strong></b>
<em>Thursday, March 30 at 2:00pm</em>
<img class="wp-image-3612 alignleft" src="https://theweitzman.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/ONLY-IN-THEATERS-HR-Pic-1-1366x910.jpg" alt="" width="263" height="176" />
To this day, Laemmle Theatres has become a gateway for independent and international cinema, attracting movie buffs and up-and-coming arthouse filmmakers galore. After years of success and overcoming challenges, from the birth of television to an ever-growing increase in film streaming, nothing will threaten their existence more than COVID-19. Filmed over two years, Raphael Sbarge’s passionate love letter to the cinema is a scary yet hopeful reminder that film is immortal, no matter how much things substantially change in the world.
<hr />
<b><em>JEWISH SHORTS</em> <strong><em>- </em><a href="https://phillyjfm.org/event/jewish-shorts-springfest-2023/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Click Here for Tickets</a></strong></b>
<em>Thursday, March 30, 7:00pm</em>
<img class="wp-image-3615 alignleft" src="https://theweitzman.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/thumbnail_FAVORITE-DAUGHTER-HR-Pic-3.png" alt="" width="238" height="134" />
<em><strong>IBACH </strong></em>For Eric Brauer, his Ibach piano is more than a musical instrument. It is an object embedded with history, a part of the family that escaped from Nazi Germany to Philadelphia. This beautiful documentary shows the piano as it is polished and restored in the City of Brotherly Love for Brauer’s family and the generations to come.
<em><strong>WOMEN OF VIRTUE </strong></em>Etel, a curious, innocent 9-year-old girl from a Hasidic community in Paris, is surprised one morning to discover she has her first period. Blessed by her mother and the community, she is pleased until she is told that women are “impure” during menstruation.
<strong><em>MAZEL TOV </em></strong> This is not your usual bar mitzvah. For 13-year-old Adam, his entrance to adulthood is interrupted by his drunk mother, air raid sirens, and lingering anxiety about the feelings of his sexuality. Despite all the chaos of this crazy evening, this is <em>his</em> special night, and Adam will dare to show his true self for all the guests to see.
<strong><em>FAVORITE DAUGHTER </em></strong>The year is 2020. As COVID-19 locks everyone indoors, director Dana Reilly quarantines with her mother and hilarious grandmother in a Tribeca apartment where they laugh, reminisce about past relationships and remind one another that no matter how scary the world gets, they will always be there for each other.
<strong>SURPRISE FILM!! </strong>See the world premiere of this accomplished musician…
<hr />
<span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>CLOSING NIGHT</strong></span>
<em><strong>HA<b>UTE COUTURE – Closing Night</b> - </strong></em><strong><a href="https://phillyjfm.org/event/haute-couture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Click Here for Tickets</a></strong>
<em>Saturday, April 1 at 7:30pm</em>
<img class="wp-image-3613 alignleft" src="https://theweitzman.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/thumbnail_HAUTE-COUTURE-HR-Pic-1.jpg" alt="" width="279" height="157" />
Intensely moving with award-worthy performances by Nathalie Baye and Lyna Khoudri, director Sylvie Ohayon's timely drama is a relatable story about the unpredicted friendships that can save our lives. Mothers and daughters, trust, love, and <i>lots </i>of clothes and fashion are just many themes in this delightfully touching Closing Night Film of Lindy SpringFest 2023.
<hr />
Live at The Weitzman
101 South Independence Mall East (Corner of 5<sup>th</sup> & Market)
Philadelphia, PA 19106
<strong>Questions or Comments?</strong>
For General Questions, please get in touch with Philadelphia Jewish Film and Media at <a href="mailto:info@phillyjfm.org">info@phillyjfm.org</a>, or visit the <a href="https://phillyjfm.org/tribe-events/category/lindy-summerfest-2022/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">PJFM official website</a>.
<hr />
<em>This program is presented by Philadelphia Jewish Film and Media in partnership with the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History.</em>
<img class="wp-image-3095 alignleft" src="https://theweitzman.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Weitzman-NMAJH-Logo-Full-Color-1366x289.jpg" alt="" width="392" height="83" /> <img class="wp-image-3134 alignleft" src="https://theweitzman.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/thumbnail_pjfm-logo-full-color-rgb-1500px@72ppi.jpg" alt="" width="107" height="112" />
Partner EventBook Talk: Saving Monticello
Sunday, Apr 2, 2023
<strong>Sunday, April 2nd
10:30am - 12:00pm
Live at Congregation Beth Am Israel</strong>
<em>1301 Hagys Ford Road</em>
<em>Penn Valley, PA</em><strong>
FREE EVENT - <a href="https://bethamisrael.shulcloud.com/form/saving-monticello.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Click Here to Register</a>
</strong>
Monticello is remembered as the home of Thomas Jefferson, but did you know that for nearly a century after his death, it was owned by a Jewish family? During this program, journalist and historian <strong>Marc Leepson</strong> will share historic images and speak about the little-known story of how an American Jewish family helped preserve one of this country's landmarks amidst increasing antisemitism in the community.
<strong>More on the Speaker</strong>
Journalist and historian Marc Leepson is the author of nine published books, including <i>Saving Monticello: The Levy Family’s Epic Quest to Rescue the House that Jefferson Built</i>, <i>Flag: An American Biography</i>, and biographies of Francis Scott Key, the Marquis de Lafayette, and Army Staff Sgt. Barry Sadler. A former staff writer for Congressional Quarterly in Washington, D.C., he taught U.S. History at Lord Fairfax Community College in Virginia, and is the arts editor, senior writer, and columnist for <i>The VVA Veteran</i> magazine, which is published by Vietnam Veterans of America in Silver Spring, Maryland.
<hr />
Live on Zoom, and at Temple Beth Am Israel
1301 Hagys Ford Road
Penn Valley, PA
<hr />
<em>This program is presented by Congregation Beth Am Israel in partnership with the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History.</em>
In Person EventFilm and Reception: How Saba Kept Singing
Thursday, Apr 13, 2023
<strong>Thursday, April 13th
5:30pm ET Doors | 6:00 pm ET Screening | 7:30pm ET Q&A |</strong>
<strong>8:00pm ET End of Passover Reception</strong>
<b>Live at the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History</b>
<strong>General Admission Ticket: $18 | Member Ticket: $15</strong>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a id="home__event-all-cta" class="box-cta box-cta--large box-cta--inline box-cta--blue box-cta-filled" href="https://www.classy.org/event/film-and-reception-how-saba-kept-singing/e467332/register/new/select-tickets?&c_src=tickets&c_src2=website" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><span class="box-cta__label">Click Here for Tickets</span></a></p>
<p data-ogsb="white">The Weitzman welcomes you to the Philadelphia premiere of the award-winning film, <em><strong>How Saba Kept Singing</strong></em>. The film shares the story of Cantor, Holocaust Survivor, and Military Veteran, <strong>David S. Wisnia</strong> (z’’l), who spends his later years traveling with his grandson and musical accompanist, <strong>Avi Wisnia</strong>, telling the story of how he survived the Holocaust using music which the duo perform together. For years, Cantor Wisnia’s story centered around the belief that he survived Auschwitz mainly by using his beautiful singing voice to entertain his Nazi captors. These performances in the death camp gave him status as a ”privileged prisoner.” However, when David takes his family back to Poland for one last performance, Avi starts asking questions and they realize someone else may have had a hand in Saba’s survival.</p>
The screening will be followed by a Q&A with Avi Wisnia who is featured in the documentary, and Sara Taksler, the film’s director. The Q&A will end with a special musical performance from Avi. All in attendance are then invited to a casual post-film reception with the Wisnia family, including wine and food to celebrate the end of Passover.
<strong>About the Documentary</strong>
David Wisnia always believed that he survived Auschwitz by using his beautiful singing voice to entertain his Nazi captors. However, when his curious grandson, Avi, starts asking questions, the pair embarked on a journey that lead them into the mystery of Saba’s past, including a previous relationship that may be the reason his life was spared. An uplifting story about faith, family and the power of discovery, proving love can grow and take hold in even the grimmest of places. This film was Executive Produced by Hillary Rodham Clinton and Chelsea Clinton.
Below is a short video about Cantor David "Saba" Wisnia (z"l)
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/pcc8xCZ35KI" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
<strong>Safety / Covid 19:
</strong>*This event will occur in the DELL THEATER.
*Masking in the museum is recommended, but not required.
<hr />
Live at The Weitzman
101 South Independence Mall East (Corner of 5<sup>th</sup> & Market)
Philadelphia, PA 19106
<hr />
<em>This program is presented by the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History in partnership with the Philadelphia Jewish Film and Media (PJFM), the Holocaust Awareness Museum and Education Center (HAMEC), and 3G Philly. </em>
<img class="wp-image-3325 alignleft" src="https://theweitzman.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Weitzman-NMAJH-Logo-Full-Color-1366x289.png" alt="" width="365" height="77" /> <img class="wp-image-3134 alignleft" src="https://theweitzman.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/thumbnail_pjfm-logo-full-color-rgb-1500px@72ppi.jpg" alt="" width="76" height="80" />
<img class="wp-image-3604 alignleft" src="https://theweitzman.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/thumbnail_HAMEC-Est.-1961-Long-1-1366x175.png" alt="" width="345" height="44" /><img class="wp-image-3677 alignleft" src="https://theweitzman.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/3gPhilly.png" alt="" width="97" height="97" />
In Person EventLev of Leningrad
Sunday, Apr 16, 2023
<strong>Sunday, April 16th
1:30pm ET Doors | 2:00 pm ET Performance </strong>
<b>Live at the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History</b>
<strong>General Admission Ticket: $18 | Member Ticket: $13</strong>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a id="home__event-all-cta" class="box-cta box-cta--large box-cta--inline box-cta--blue box-cta-filled" href="https://www.classy.org/event/lev-of-leningrad/e468411/register/new/select-tickets?&c_src=tickets&c_src2=website" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><span class="box-cta__label">Click Here for Tickets</span></a></p>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">The combination of humor and heartbreak promises to make this theatrical reading of Noah Schoenberg’s </span><em><b>Lev of Leningrad</b></em><span style="font-weight: 400;"> a memorable and moving experience. This powerful play offers a unique perspective on the immigrant experience. Lev and his wife Marina's 24-year journey from the Soviet Union to America is sure to resonate with audiences and highlight the challenges and triumphs of adapting to a new culture, a modern American culture. In addition to enjoying the dramatic reading, guests will gain a deeper understanding of the immigrant experience.</span>
<strong>About the Show
</strong>Lev Furman became a <em>refusenik</em> in 1974 after the Leningrad Office of the Emigration Department of the Russian Soviet Federated Socialist Republic (LOEDRSFSR, for short) denied Lev’s application for an exit visa. For the next fourteen years Lev resisted the not very secret Russian police (KGB) and Soviet bureaucrats while building a not so underground Jewish studies movement and demanding the right to emigrate.
Lev and his wife Marina – also a refusenik, originally from Kyiv, in Ukraine – were finally expelled in 1988. They landed in Philadelphia 10 years later.
Lev of Leningrad is their story, an extraordinary family saga of contradictions that Lev embraced while obeying law and conscience, both divine and humane, in Leningrad as a refusenik and in Philadelphia as a father.
One constant: Lev has never stopped fighting for freedom; just a few months ago, he refused to withdraw from the sauna at closing time.
<strong>About the Playwright</strong>
Noah Schoenberg is honored to have known the Furman family for many years, since meeting Michal on their first day of preschool at the Kaiserman Jewish Community Center in Wynnewood, Pa. Noah earned undergraduate degrees in mathematics and neuroscience and worked in finance for five years before he turned to playwriting. His change of profession did not surprise his previous employer, who was largely unimpressed with his work as a commodities analyst. Lev of Leningrad is Noah’s first play. He has other original pieces in development for the stage and screen.
<strong>Safety / Covid 19:
</strong>*This event will occur in the DELL THEATER.
*Masking in the museum is recommended.
<hr />
Live at The Weitzman
101 South Independence Mall East (Corner of 5<sup>th</sup> & Market)
Philadelphia, PA 19106
<hr />
<em>This program is presented by the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History in Partnership with the Jewish National Fund. </em>
<img class="wp-image-3325 alignleft" src="https://theweitzman.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Weitzman-NMAJH-Logo-Full-Color-1366x289.png" alt="" width="365" height="77" />
<img class="alignnone wp-image-3586" src="https://theweitzman.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/smallJNFlogo-1366x1034.jpg" alt="" width="278" height="210" />