Diverse topics converge at the Seattle Jewish Film Festival

The past few years have seen a boom in documentary filmgoing — and one of Seattle's largest film festivals is joining right in.

The 12th annual Seattle Jewish Film Festival, presented by the Greater Seattle chapter of the American Jewish Committee and unspooling Saturday through March 25, will feature more nonfiction films than it ever has. "This is our best year for documentaries," said festival director Pamela Lavitt, noting that almost half of the year's full-length films are real-life stories.

The festival's eight days (there are no events on Friday, March 23) begin Saturday night with a gala Cinerama screening of the drama "Brother's Shadow," with director Todd Yellin and actors Judd Hirsch and Scott Cohen present. And for the first time, the festival will close with a documentary: Solo Avital's "More than 1000 Words" is a portrait of acclaimed Israeli photojournalist Ziv Koren, who's long covered the conflict in the Middle East with his dramatic images.

The festival is one of the largest Jewish film festivals in the country — a far cry from its 1995 start at the tiny Grand Illusion — and has in past years featured a number of Oscar-winning or Oscar-nominated films before their theatrical releases: "Nowhere in Africa," "The Last Days," "Sophie Scholl: The Final Days." Lavitt pointed out that while the number of films is smaller this year than previous years, she feels that the overall quality is higher.

And the SJFF continues its emphasis on dialogue and community, with many films featuring post-screening panel discussions. At the Museum of History and Industry, where many of the festival's screenings will take place, the festival has rented the McCurdy Gallery (upstairs from the auditorium) for festivalgoers to mingle and chat.

The festival is also focusing on bringing more guests. Yellin, Hirsch and Cohen are scheduled to attend opening night; director/screenwriter Diana Zvi-Riklis will attend with her film "Three Mothers," about the triplet sisters of an Egyptian/Jewish family. Producer Todd Shotz will attend with "Wrestling with Angels: Playwright Tony Kushner," and co-writer/art director Hervé Mimran will be present for the French comedy "You're So Pretty!" (described, intriguingly, as "'Desperate Housewives' meets 'Sex and the City' for French Jewish girls).

True stories

Many of the festival's documentaries offer, said Lavitt, a fresh look at familiar topics. "The Rape of Europa" examines the theft and destruction of art by the Third Reich, focusing on the story of Gustav Klimt's "Gold Portrait," a work stolen from Viennese Jews in 1938 and recently sold at auction for $135 million. Joan Allen narrates the film, which was written, produced and directed by three San Francisco-area filmmakers: Richard Berge, Nicole Newnham and Bonni Cohen.

"Wrestling with Angels: Playwright Tony Kushner," seen last summer at the Seattle International Film Festival and directed by Academy Award winner Freida Lee Mock, presents the playwright discussing his childhood, his feelings about being gay and being Jewish, his determination to effect political change through his work and his ultimate belief in the power of words and of optimism.

Shosh Shlam's "Be Fruitful and Multiply," one of many films this year by and about women, looks at the lives of ultra-Orthodox women, whose married lives are focused for decades on pregnancy, childbirth and nursing. The film will be followed by a panel discussion. "Paper Dolls," from Israel, looks at a group of gay Filipino home healthcare workers who care for elderly Jewish clients by day and perform in a drag queen ensemble at night. Directed by Tomer Heymann, it won audience awards at film festivals in Berlin and Los Angeles.

Features and bonuses

The festival's feature films are also varied, starting with "Brother's Shadow," a thoughtful tale of a prodigal son (Cohen) returning home to work in his family's furniture business after his twin brother's death. Yellin's film (his feature debut) lovingly portrays the floating sawdust and glossy burnishes of the woodworking shop. Appropriately, the festival's opening night is sponsored by three local Jewish-family-owned multigeneration furniture businesses: Greenbaum Home Furnishings, Masins Furniture and Schoenfeld Interiors.

"Frozen Days," from Israel, is a "Memento"-esque tale of a young Tel Aviv woman who assumes the identity of a man she meets in a chat room. "Steel Toes," from Canada, stars David Strathairn ("Good Night, and Good Luck") as a Jewish court-appointed lawyer defending a neo-Nazi skinhead accused of murder.

Thursday, March 22, brings a special event at the Stroum Jewish Community Center (3801 E. Mercer Way, Mercer Island): a special lunch-and-a-movie program for those 55 and older. "Boynton Beach Club," featuring Dyan Cannon, Len Cariou, Sally Kellerman and Brenda Vaccaro, will screen; the film, directed by Susan Seidelman ("Desperately Seeking Susan"), is a romantic comedy set in a Florida retirees community. The film is free; lunch is $5. Reservations are required: RSVP to Roni at the SJCC, 206-232-7115, Ext. 269.

And the festival's closing weekend features a Sunday brunch and film, sponsored by Matzoh Momma's. "Wondrous Oblivion," a family-friendly film about a Jewish boy in '60s England who learns cricket from his Jamaican neighbor (Delroy Lindo), will screen March 25 at Cinerama, following a 10 a.m. brunch. It will be followed by another family film, "Little Heroes," from Israel.

Moira Macdonald: 206-464-2725 or mmacdonald@seattletimes.com