Women Making Movies: Dancing in Jaffa

Description

Running from Crazy, a film by Barbara Koppel, 2013 September 14 A documentary examining the personal journey of model and actress Mariel Hemingway, the great granddaughter of Ernest Hemingway, as she strives for a greater understanding of her family history of suicide and mental illness. Through stunning archival footage of the three Hemingway sisters and intimate moments with Mariel herself, the film examines the remarkable and often heartbreaking Hemingway legacy. Through it all, Mariel finds a way to overcome a similar fate for herself and her daughters, bringing awareness to an issue that she's deeply passionate about. CITIZENFOUR, a film by Laura Poitras, 2014 November 9 Winner of the 2014 Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. CITIZENFOUR is a real life thriller, unfolding by the minute, giving audiences unprecedented access to the filmmakers encounters with Edward Snowden in Hong Kong, as he hands over classified documents providing evidence of mass indiscriminate and illegal invasions of privacy by the National Security Agency (NSA). CITIZENFOUR not only shows you the dangers of governmental surveillance—it makes you feel them. After seeing the film, you will never think the same way about your phone, email, credit card, web browser, or profile, ever again. Love Between the Covers, a film by Laurie Kahn, 2016 December 14 This award winning documentary is a funny and inspiring look into the billion-dollar romance fiction industry and its powerhouse of female writers and readers, a sisterhood that’s pioneering the digital revolution while finding fortune, fulfillment, and a global community. What Happened, Miss Simone? a film by Liz Garbus, 2015 January 11 An Oscar and Emmy nominated biographical documentary about the life and legend Nina Simone, American singer, pianist, and civil rights activist labeled the "High Priestess of Soul." The film which takes its title from an essay by Maya Angelou, combines previously unreleased archival footage and interviews with Simone's daughter and friends. Brave Miss World, a film by Celia Peck, 2013 February 8 Weeks before winning the 1998 Miss World pageant, Israeli teen Linor Abargil was held captive and raped by her travel agent while heading home from an Italian modeling assignment. This is a powerful biographical documentary about one woman's quest to turn personal tragedy into global awareness. The Longing: The Forgotten Jews of South America, a film by Gabriela Bohm, 2007 March 8 Set in Ecuador, this award-winning documentary tells the story of a small group of South Americans whose European Jewish ancestors were forced to convert during the Spanish Inquisition. Isolated in Catholic countries and rejected by local Jewish communities, the group seeks the guidance of a Brazilian American rabbi who helps “lost Jews” reclaim their identities. Though the new converts’ dreams are partially fulfilled, they face an uncertain future. Dancing in Jaffa, a film by Hilla Medalia, 2013 May 10 In this moving lesson in intercultural diplomacy, Ballroom dancing bridges gaps between Jewish and Palestinian children in Israel. Celebrated ballroom dancer Pierre Dulaine, a veteran of a tremendously successful interethnic program in New York, returns to help his hometown of Jaffa, which he fled as a 4-year-old in 1948. Starting with a seemingly impossible situation, marked by deep cultural restrictions and war-forged trauma, the film traces a slow but inexorable process of change as enemies learn to tango, rumba and meringue together.