LUCIDMEDIA

The Toronto Jewish Film Festival: Music, Comedy, Education, Tradition

Written by Catherine Kustanczy Thursday, 16 April 2009 14:24

This year’s edition of the Toronto Jewish Film Festival aims to make you do more than sit and watch. You’ll be thinking, talking, questioning, and maybe even inspired to sing and dance. The festival runs April 28th to 26th in Toronto, at a variety of locales, and features an international program of movies from 23 countries and six continents. Various aspects of Jewish identity are examined and explored, but there’s something for everyone too. And that includes those who love to sing and dance.

That’s because this year’s festival has a special component, called Gotta Sing, Gotta Dance: Songwriters of the Musicals. The program will combine documentaries (on Broadway legends like Frank Loesser, Harold Arlen, and Richard Rodgers, among many others) with feature films, including The Pajama Game, Swing Time, and the Marx Brothers’ classic Duck Soup.

Ellie Skrow, the Curator of Special Programs, says the program is “centered on Broadway, on the Golden Age of Broadway and the heydey of Hollywood musicals.” In coordinating the content for Gotta Sing, Gotta Dance, Skrow was struck by how many composers and lyricists were Jewish, and how much their contributions went toward building American popular culture. “(Their work) evolved into another chapter in the creation of American popular music and musicals, and a lot of wrote for Tin Pan Alley and popular music. What’s striking to me is that the music has endured.”

Helen Zukerman, Executive Director, sees the musicals’ inclusion as evidence of the range and breadth that’s resulted from the festival’s evolution since it was first started in 1992. This year, the Toronto Jewish Film Festival will be showing 70 films from 23 countries –a record. “It’s unbelievable,” she marvels.“We probably looked at 500 films,” she says of the selection process, “which is astonishing, because there are probably some we didn’t find.”Larry Anklewicz, the festival’s Program Coordinator, says the theme this year is deceptively simple. “It’s a look at how we see ourselves through film, which is, in itself, wide-ranging. We have films from all over the world, and even to us it’s amazing where some come from.”

Anklewicz notes that the festival tries to get a balance of diverse, interesting films on a range of different topics, set in a variety of locales, to better reflect the modern Jewish

experience. “There are so many topics that can be covered,” he says, “some of which aren’t really the most ‘up’ kind of viewing, so we try to find things that are a little bit lighter.” He names The Fire Within: The Jews Of The Amazonian Rainforest, a documentary looking at Jews who went to South America at turn of the 20th century and took part in the rubber boom. “It’s a fascinating story,” he observes. “We’re always looking for these kinds of films. We’re also looking for films that will teach something, where you can come away with something.”Susan Starkman, the Coordinator for Filmmatters Education Outreach, also sees the value in offering a diverse array of films. Starkman worked as a teacher in Australia for a decade before moving to Canada, and was struck by the divide in approaches to education. Film, is widely used as a teaching tools down under. With the Toronto Jewish Film Festival, Starkman’s aim is to“try to find a way to incorporate film education into the curriculum.”

In terms of red tape and concerns over content, Starkman says every detail is carefully considered, but she is aware of political concerns and ideas around the festival being somehow agenda-driven. “We always put a warning if there’s any language or sexual content,” she explains, “and we’re sensitive with what we pick. All of our films are only rated 14+, they’re not restricted, but when people see ‘Jewish film festival,’ they think, ‘What’s the agenda?’ It can be an obstacle. We don’t have an agenda other than to build bridges between communities.” She explains that the festival won’t screen films related to the conflict in the Middle East, but goes more toward human dramas that transcend religious beliefs.

One of those films, Arranged, was screened to wide appeal at last year’s festival. The movie deals with the story of two students in a Brooklyn high school. Directed by Diane Crespo and writer Stefan C. Schaefer, it’s based on the true tale of two young women –one Jewish, one Muslim –who are both in the process of having marriages arranged for them.  Many Toronto-area teachers chose this film to bring classes to because they had students who found themselves in the process of having a marriage arranged for them; the screening provided a perfect life-imitating-art-imitating-life moment that opened up discussion. “The students loved it,” Starkman recalls.

The screening also provided an avenue for cross-cultural connection. Starkman received an email from one of the teachers who participated, saying he hadn’t felt comfortable sharing his Jewish background in the predominantly-Muslim school he taught in until the screening of Arranged. It lead to a number of shared conversations and revelations with students, and the consensus that “it doesn’t matter what religion we are, as long as everyone gets along” That’s precisely the kind of spirit the Toronto Jewish Film Festival hopes to foster.

Introducing younger generations to older works is another consideration, if not an intentional one. Ellie Skrow suspects there may be more than a few young faces who come to see Duck Soup not knowing who the Marx Brothers are.

“It’s sad they don’t have that historical perspective,” she sighs. “A lot of people in the industry might’ve borrowed (from what) came before, but younger generations don’t know that, and sometimes it gets diluted –they were incredible artists.”

Zukerman echoes the sentiment, noting that “a lot of the new generations haven’t seen these big musicals on a big screen.” But as if acknowledging the modern reality, she quickly adds that her biggest nightmare is “to watch a movie on my iPod. Watching it on a big screen always a thrill.”

Anklewicz underlines the importance of entertainment as education, noting that “we do try not to put in an overwhelming amount of Holocaust or political films. With so many films being made, we have a wide range. We look at them and say, ‘How good are they?’ Secondly, is it something people should know about? Something people will want to know about? We (judge) on that basis, taking films we like, and then start programming, with an eye on balance.”

Zukerman notes the festival is “really lucky” not to be tied into a community centre, or any other organizations that might dictate programming. “Our job is to show good, high-quality films. Sometimes, with free speech, you don’t love what someone’s saying, but that’s why it’s free speech, and to be honest, the community has been very supportive of us, which doesn’t mean we don’t get criticized, but that’s the way it is. We’re not scared of that.”

To critics who may feel the festival should be more staunch in its political leanings, Zukerman is quick to give a human angle. “I say: this is somebody’s story. You can’t say it isn’t valid –it’s their story. Come and watch it. You don’t have to change your mind, but come and hear somebody’s story.”

The Toronto Jewish Film Festival runs April 18th to 26th at various locales around the city. Check the festival website for more information.