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Brochure of the Center for Jewish Living and Learning at the Evelyn Rubenstein Jewish Community Center of Houston. Includes the Houston Jewish Film Festival
Citation preview
l i terature
fi lm
art
music
dance
learning
Sum
mer
/Spr
ing
2012
8thAnnual
submerge yourself in the 8th annual houston jewish film festival
MARCH 6 - 18
OPENING NIGHT
88
HJFF STAFF:Ariela Emery, ERJCCMarian Luntz, MFAHTamara Savage, HMH
COMMUNITY PARTNERS:Alexander Institute for Inclusion, a Division of JFS Department of Disability ServicesThe American Israel Public Affairs CommitteeAnti-Defamation LeagueCongregation Beth IsraelHolocaust Museum HoustonL’Chaim Center NCJW – Greater Houston SectionUnited Orthodox Synagogues
HOUSTON JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL
elcome to the 8th Annual Houston Jewish Film Festival, a collaboration between the ERJCC of Houston and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, with Holocaust Museum Houston as a longstanding venue.
A big thanks to our dedicated film committee volunteers, who spend dozens of hours screening films to select the best ones from around the world that tell stories of Jewish significance, with poignancy and creativity, and reflect the values that shape Jewish life. This year we are pleased to have three filmmakers and one actor to introduce their films and lead post-screening discussions.
We are grateful to our underwriters, sponsors, community partners, and patrons for their generous support. Enjoy the Festival and spread the word!
Barbara Bronstein, ChairDoreen Joffe and Sharon Kagan, Honorary Chairs
W
2012 FILM COMMITTEE:Karen AptekarNeil AussenbergMargie BeegleNada ChandlerJohn DreyfusJustine FanarofSue GoottPatti HanflingDiane LeeDavid MendelMiriam PachtPaula SiegelStefani TwyfordHelen Wils
Throughout HJFF we will be accepting donations of gently used children’s books. Designated book drop-off screenings are Deaf Jam on March 6, Young Abraham on March 11, and Nicky’s Family on March 16.
KADDISH FOR A FRIEND
(KADDISCH FÜR EINEN FREUND)
Tuesday, March 6 • 7:30 PM • ERJCC
Friday, March 9 • 1:00 PM • ERJCC
Directed by Leo Khasin
Germany, 2011, 94 min.
Arabic, German, Russian with English
Subtitles
Drama
Alexander, an 84 year old widowed
Russian Jewish war veteran living
alone in Berlin, wants to maintain his
independence despite pressures from
social workers to move into a nurs-
ing home. A Palestinian family from
Lebanon occupies a downstairs flat. Ali,
the teenage son in the family, together
with his friends, vandalize and ransack
Alexander’s flat and destroy some of his
most treasured possessions. In order to
avoid deportation, Ali’s family insists he
repair the damage. Slowly, the mutual
disdain each feels for the other turns to
understanding and ultimately friendship
in this coming-of-age film inspired by
two real people.
Sponsored by June & Leonard Goldberg
Patron Sponsors: Helen Wils & Leonard Goldstein
Paula & Irving Pozmantier
DEAF JAM
Wednesday, March 7 • 1:00 PM • ERJCC
Directed by Judy Lieff
USA, 2011, 70 min.
English and American Sign Language
with English Subtitles
Documentary
Aneta Brodski, a deaf Israeli teen, at-
tends a school for the deaf in Queens,
N.Y. where she explores slam poetry
using American Sign Language. Proud
of her deafness but aware of the isola-
tion it brings, Aneta utilizes her unique
experiences to create a powerful poetic
art form. When Aneta meets Tahani, a
hearing Palestinian slam poet, the two
create a deaf/hearing duet in which
they explore their shared and personal
experiences and generate a new form of
slam poetry which speaks to the deaf as
well as the hearing.
CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM
Wednesday, March 7
Studio Movie Grill at CityCentre
6:00 - 7:30 PM Happy Hour at the
Cinema Bar • 7:30 PM Screening
Created by Larry David
USA, Three 30 min. episodes
English
TV Series, Comedy
In this largely improvised series starring
himself, Seinfeld co-creator Larry David
shamelessly takes issue with frustrating
and frivolous social conventions. Always
landing himself in awkward situations,
David must negotiate how to get out
of them…or decide that they aren’t so
awkward after all. The three episodes
featured at HJFF will get you laughing at
David, at the convoluted yet familiar sce-
narios, and most importantly, at yourself.
Seating opens at 7:10 PM and is first-come, first-served.
Canadian novelist Mordecai Richler was one of the Jewish writers who dominated the
literary landscape in the latter half of the twentieth century. Richler, born to immigrant
parents and raised on Talmud, comic books, and tales of the old world, explored the
Jewish immigrant experience in the new world. His best known novels, The Appren-
ticeship of Duddy Kravitz and Barney’s Version, were made into award winning films.
This documentary features conversations with other outstanding literary voices, and
captures the personality of the man known as contrary and unpredictable, one of the
outstanding Jewish voices of the 20th century.
MORDECAI RICHLER:
THE LAST OF THE WILD JEWS
Wednesday, March 7 • 7:30 PM • 14 Pews
Wednesday, March 14 • 5:00 PM • ERJCC
Directed by Francine Pelletier
Canada, 2010, 52 min.
English and French with English Subtitles
Documentary
FEATURING:Deaf Jam and Nicky’s Family
$8 Member/$10 PublicRSVP required w/ 24 hr. notice Call Esther Bethke at 713.729.3299 ext. 3258
Holy Mordechai! Dress up like your favorite Curb character for
Purim. Best costume wins a special prize!
8 t h A N N U A L H O U S T O N J E W I S H F I L M F E S T I V A L | | | M A R C H 6 – 1 8
DESIGNATED USED CHILDREN’S BOOKS DROP-OFF FILM
OPENING NIGHT FREE EVENT
LUNCH
MOVIEAND A
For Adults 65+
See erjcchouston.org/filmfest for details.
FOR 14 PEWS SCREENINGS
SPECIAL PRICES APPLY
PAUL GOODMAN CHANGED MY LIFE
Thursday, March 8 • 7:00 PM • MFAH
Introduced by Filmmaker Jonathan Lee
Sunday, March 11 • 1:00 PM • MFAH
Introduced by UH Professor Tony Hoagland
Directed by Jonathan Lee
USA, 2011, 89 min.
English
Documentary
Author of the legendary bestseller Grow-
ing Up Absurd, Paul Goodman (1911–1972)
was also a bisexual poet, family man,
pacifist, visionary, cofounder of Gestalt
therapy and a moral compass for many
in the burgeoning counterculture of the
1960s. Paul Goodman Changed My Life
immerses audiences in an era of high in-
tellect, when New York was peaking cul-
turally and artistically. Using a treasure
trove of archival multimedia, director/
producer Jonathan Lee and producer/
editor Kimberly Reed (Prodigal Sons)
have woven together a rich portrait of
an intellectual heavyweight whose ideas
are long overdue for rediscovery.
JOANNA
Thursday, March 8 • 7:30 PM • ERJCC
Tuesday, March 13 • 5:00 PM • ERJCC
Directed by Feliks Falk
Poland, 2010, 105 min.
Polish with English Subtitles
Drama
In this tense and compelling film,
Joanna, a Polish piano teacher living
in Warsaw during the Nazi occupation,
waits in vain to hear from her husband
on the front line when she discovers
a young Jewish girl hiding in a church
after a round-up of Jews. At tremendous
risk to her own safety, Joanna hides
Roza in her home. Amidst the suspicions
of neighbors and Nazi officers, Joanna
faces difficult decisions and moral
choices if Roza is to survive.
Vienna, 1939: Jewish art dealer Victor and newly minted SS officer Rudi are childhood friends who find themselves on opposite sides
of the coming storm. With an international incident over a hidden original Michelangelo print at stake, Rudi, who has appropriated
Victor’s family estate and fiancée, must also secure Victor’s cooperation to ensure his own survival. Action-packed, full of twists,
turns, and reversals of fortune, My Best Enemy is a much welcomed first course that will have audiences on the edge of their seats
wanting more. —Philadelphia Jewish Film Festival
YOUNG ABRAHAM: FROM THE
ANCIENT STORIES OF THE
ISRAELITES
Sunday, March 11 • 11:00 AM • ERJCC
$4/person, $20 family max
Directed by Todd Shaffer
Canada, 2011, 48 min.
English
Animation
Written by two Chabad-Lubavitch
rabbis, this cutting-edge animated film
relates the story of Abraham and his
quest to prove that God is much more
than just stone idols. Spanning the first
75 years of the Jewish patriarch’s life,
Young Abraham is the perfect way to
teach children K-5 of the midrashim that
describe who Abraham was before he is
introduced to us in the Torah.
8 t h A N N U A L H O U S T O N J E W I S H F I L M F E S T I V A L | | | M A R C H 6 – 1 8
DESIGNATED USED CHILDREN’S BOOKS DROP-OFF FILM
Every movie ticket at the MFAH gets you 10% off at Café Express
in the Museum. Make it ‘dinner and a movie’ on Saturday nights!
Did you know?
RECOMMENDED FOR AGES 5 - 10
DIRECTOR APPEARANCE
MY BEST ENEMY
(MEIN BESTER FEIND)
Saturday, March 10 • 8:00 PM • MFAH
Directed by Wolfgang Murnberger
Austria, Luxembourg, 2011, 109 min.
German with English Subtitles
Thriller© Aicholzer Film Production GMBTT/Petro Domenigg
SURVIVING HITLER: A LOVE STORY
Sunday, March 11 • 7:30 PM • HMH
Directed by John-Keith Wasson
USA, 2010, 65 min.
English
Documentary
Jutta Cords is a high school student in
Nazi Germany when she learns that her
maternal grandparents had converted
from Judaism to Christianity. Accord-
ingly, Jutta is considered Jewish, and
as such, is denied every opportunity
of a future. Jutta reconnects with her
childhood friend, Helmuth, who, upon his
return from the German front, becomes
involved in the Valkyrie plot to assas-
sinate Hitler. Jutta and Helmuth do their
best to maintain a romance while they
fight in the resistance alongside Jutta’s
parents who use their home as a safe
house. The documentary is narrated by
Jutta herself with original 8 mm footage
shot by Helmuth.
OTTO FRANK, FATHER OF ANNE
Monday, March 12 • 7:30 PM • ERJCC
Directed by David De Jongh
Netherlands, 2010, 75 min.
Dutch, English, German with English
Subtitles
Documentary
Dutch director David De Jongh’s docu-
mentary draws upon archival footage
and interviews to create a complex
portrait of Otto Frank, the father of Anne
Frank and the only family member to
survive the Holocaust. The film explores
Otto’s early years as an assimilated
German Jew, his obsession with main-
taining Anne’s memory, his correspon-
dence with young readers, and the zeal
to promote her diaries. De Jongh does
not ignore the controversies and ques-
tions surrounding editorial tinkering
with Anne’s diaries and their Hollywood
and Broadway adaptations in this well-
rounded portrait of a man whose grief
and pride inform his life’s work.
FREE MEN (LES HOMMES LIBRES)
Tuesday, March 13 • 7:30 PM • ERJCC
Directed by Ismaël Ferroukhi
France, 2011, 99 min.
French with English Subtitles
Thriller
Set in 1942 in German-occupied Paris, Younes, a young Algerian immigrant, makes
his living on the black market. Tracked down by the German occupation forces, and
desirous of avoiding a jail sentence, he agrees to spy at the Paris Mosque, a meet-
ing ground for Muslim Resistance fighters whose activities include rescuing North
African Jews, providing false identity papers, and assassinating Vichy government
informers. There he befriends an Algerian cabaret singer involved in the Paris
underground whom he later discovers is a Jew. Slowly, Younes is transformed from a
politically ignorant black marketeer to a full-fledged freedom fighter.
Patron Sponsors: Graciela & Albert Handy
Patti & Dan Steiner
MARY LOU (TAMID OTO CHALOM)
Sunday, March 11 • 3:00 PM • MFAH
Directed by Eytan Fox
Israel, 2010, 150 min.
Hebrew with English Subtitles
Mini-Series, Musical
Following the trend of contemporary mu-
sicals like Glee, the made-for-Israeli-TV
series Mary Lou features a soundtrack
by Israeli pop star Svika Pick (who ap-
pears as himself). Acclaimed director
Eytan Fox (The Bubble, Walk on Water)
tells the story of a boy’s (Ido Rosenberg)
search for his wayward mother (Maya
Dagan, The Matchmaker) that eventually
leads him to a new identity in Tel Aviv:
as a drag queen named Mary Lou. The
TV series won Israel’s national award for
Best Miniseries in 2010.
8 t h A N N U A L H O U S T O N J E W I S H F I L M F E S T I V A L | | | M A R C H 6 – 1 8
LITTLE ROSE (RÓYŽCZKA)
Wednesday, March 14 • 7:30 PM • ERJCC
Directed by Jan Kidawa-Błonski
Poland, 2010, 118 min.
Polish with English Subtitles
Thriller
1967 was the Summer of Love in the
United States; in the Soviet Bloc, the
yearnings for democracy played out
against political repression and heavy-
handed attempts to discourage such
yearnings. Once again, Jews were
scapegoats. In this thriller, Roman Rožek,
a Polish Security Service officer, enlists
his naïve girlfriend, code name “Little
Rose,” to spy upon and become the lover
of Warczewski, a professor, writer, and in-
tellectual believed to be a Zionist. Little
Rose begins to enjoy her role as a spy
and the refined experiences she enjoys
with Warczewski as opposed to the
crude pleasures of Rožek. As she starts
questioning her role and her loyalties,
the love triangle becomes ever more
dangerous: the totalitarian regime will
go to any lengths to protect its interests.
DOLPHIN BOY
Thursday, March 15 • 5:00 PM • ERJCC
Director Dani Menkin in Attendance
Directed by Dani Menkin and Yonatan Nir
Israel, 2011, 72 min.
Hebrew with English Subtitles
Documentary
SRUGIM
Thursday, March 15 • 7:30 PM • ERJCC
Actor Amos Tamam in Attendance
Created by Eliezer (Laizy) Shapiro and
Chana Divon
Israel, Three 35 min. episodes from
Season 1 (2008)
Hebrew with English Subtitles
TV Series, Dramedy
Just wrapping up its third season,
Srugim is one of Israel’s most popular
TV shows. Named after the knitted kip-
pah worn by Modern Orthodox men in
Israel, the series follows the lives of five
observant Jewish single men and women
in the Katamon neighborhood of Jeru-
salem. This well-educated, professionally
ambitious group of friends struggles to
find its place within the existing religious
frameworks, as the pressures of love,
marriage, and career are often at odds.
Sponsored by the Consulate General of
Israel to the Southwest
NICKY’S FAMILY
Friday, March 16 • 1:00 PM • ERJCC
Directed by Matej Minác
Czech Republic/Slovak Republic, 2011,
96 min.
English
Documentary
In 1938, Nicholas Winton, a 20 year old
London stockbroker visiting Prague, or-
ganized a rescue of 669 Jewish children
in danger of deportation and arranged
for seven rail-sea transports of the
children. For more than half a century,
Winton did not speak of these events.
Had not his wife found a suitcase in their
attic filled with documents and transport
plans, the story would have remained
locked away. The children, now grown
and living all over the world, relate their
memories of the period to a background
of newsreel footage, archival photos,
and dramatic re-enactments of events
of the era. Sir Winton, now 102 years old,
was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II and
nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for
his humanitarian work.
Dolphin Boy is a four-year study of Morad, an Arab teenager who is beaten and left for dead by his assailants. Israeli psychologist,
Ilan Kutz, an expert in post-traumatic disassociation, agrees to take on his case. When Morad awakens, he is unable to speak,
communicate or focus. His father quits his job and vows to devote himself to bringing Morad back from the near dead. As a last
resort, Dr. Kutz decides to relocate Morad to the Eilat Dolphin Habitat where Morad begins to swim, play and spend time with
dolphins. Initially non-responsive, as the months pass, we watch as Morad slowly emerges from the abyss as he responds to the
healing powers of nature and love.
8 t h A N N U A L H O U S T O N J E W I S H F I L M F E S T I V A L | | | M A R C H 6 – 1 8
$5@5:00! ALL FIVE O’CLOCK MOVIES ARE ONLYFIVE DOLLARS!
DIRECTOR APPEARANCE
ACTOR APPEARANCE
DESIGNATED USED CHILDREN’S BOOKS DROP-OFF FILM
RESTORATION
(BOKER TOV ADON FIDELMAN)
Saturday, March 17 • 8:00 PM • MFAH
Directed by Joseph Madmony
Israel, 2011, 105 min.
Hebrew with English subtitles
Drama
Seventy-year-old Yaakov Fidelman (The
Band’s Visit’s Sasson Gabai) is thrown
into turmoil after the sudden death
of his long-time partner in a Tel Aviv
antiques restoration workshop. Just as
his ambitious son Noah pressures him to
sell the business and build an apartment
complex on the site, a talented new as-
sistant shows up, giving him hope. Anton
has many secrets, yet he forms a bond
with Yaakov that Noah finds as threat-
ening as the flirtation between his very
pregnant wife and Anton. A complex
character study that also displays great
reverence for a very traditional profes-
sion, the film’s title resonates on several
levels without providing easy answers.
The already dysfunctional Roshko household is thrown into further disarray when their autistic son and brother Tomer is sent home
from the suddenly closed institution in which he has been living. Miri, Tomer’s mother, is a preschool teacher having an affair with
the father of one of her students. Gidi, Tomer’s father, is a crop-duster who has been grounded for getting stoned. Yoni, Tomer’s
brother, who resents Tomer’s reappearance in the household, is selling his services completing homework assignments for his not so
intellectually gifted classmates while studying for his Bar Mitzvah portion—the story of Noah and the flood. Family pressures mount
as secrets emerge and impact the lives of family and community in this touching and sometimes comic film.
Closing Night Reception courtesy of Fleischer Wines
BEYOND THE BOUNDARIES
Sunday, March 18 • 1:00 PM • ERJCC
Producer Nina Hawn Zale in Attendance
Directed by Yonatan Nir
USA, 2011, 60 min.
English and Hebrew with English Subtitles
Documentary
For years photographer Nina Hawn Zale has
been volunteering her services for
Golshim L’Chaim-Ski to Live, and in 2011 she
engineered the making of a documentary
about the organization’s work. Beyond the
Boundaries follows several injured Israeli
veterans—some of whom are amputees—
who were invited by Golshim L’Chaim for
rehabilitative skiing in Aspen. Directed by
award winning Yonatan Nir (co-director of
Dolphin Boy) with Highlight Films Israel, the
film outlines the universal message of hope,
overcoming life’s challenges, and how ad-
versity opens the door for human potential.
Patron Sponsors:
Linda & Jerry Rubenstein
FRACTURE
Sunday, March 18 • 3:00 PM • ERJCC
Directed by Alain Tasma
France, 2011, 115 min.
French with English Subtitles
Drama
Anna, an idealistic young Jewish teacher,
embarks on her career at a junior high
school in a poor, immigrant, Parisian
neighborhood. Her students are angry
about their lack of opportunity, unin-
terested in education, belligerent, and
beset with financial, medical, and social
problems. One of her once-promising
students, Lakdar, is a talented artist left
without the use of his hand as a result of
a bungled medical procedure. His anger
is further fueled by his older brother,
a radicalized Muslim, who encourages
Lakdar to take revenge. Anna herself is
the victim of anti-Semitic slurs, and in
such an environment, her enthusiasm
and idealism begin to wane in this grim
but realistic chronicle of alienated im-
migrant youth.
8 t h A N N U A L H O U S T O N J E W I S H F I L M F E S T I V A L | | | M A R C H 6 – 1 8
PRODUCER APPEARANCE
THE FLOOD (MABUL)
Sunday, March 18 • 7:30 PM • ERJCC
Directed by Guy Nattiv
Israel, 2010, 100 min.
Hebrew with English Subtitles
Drama
YOUR CHANCE TO WIN! n
n
Each ticket purchase enters you into a raffle to win a gift card from
Sun & Ski Sports.
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INDIVIDUAL TICKETS:
All 5:00 PM Movies are $5.00
$8 ERJCC Member/Patron of the Arts & MFAH Member
$10 Public
$1 discount for students and seniors
FESTIVAL PASS
Free for MFAH Film Buffs and ERJCC Patrons of the Arts
who elect the Jewish Film Series
$50 ERJCC Member/Patron of the Arts & MFAH Member
$70 Public
$5 discount for students and seniors
wanna step it up?BECOME A REEL FAN OR CINEMATOGRAPHER
REEL FAN: $150 includes Festival Pass
CINEMATOGRAPHER: $250 includes Festival Pass
erjcchouston.org/filmfest
8 t h A N N U A L H O U S T O N J E W I S H F I L M F E S T I V A L | | | M A R C H 6 – 1 8
Evelyn Rubenstein Jewish Community Center of Houston
5601 South Braeswood Houston, TX 77096
713.551.7255 erjcchouston.org
The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
1001 Bissonnet Street Houston, TX 77005
713.639.7515 mfah.org/film
Holocaust Museum Houston
Morgan Family Center
5401 Caroline Street Houston, TX 77004
713.942.8000 hmh.org
Studio Movie Grill at CityCentre
805 Town and Country Ln., Houston, TX 77024
713.461.4449 studiomoviegrill.com
14 Pews
800 Aurora St., Houston, TX 77009
281.888.9677 14pews.com
SUPPORTERS
TICKETS VENUES
Official Hotel of the ERJCC
Lillian Kaiser Lewis Foundation
8 Eat at Café at the J during HJFF! The Café is open
until 7:30 PM every night of an ERJCC screening.
The Consulate General of Israel to the Southwest
Fleischer Wines
The Jewish Herald-Voice
June & Leonard Goldberg
Sun & Ski Sports
erjcchouston.org/filmfest
NURTURE:
Stories of New
Midlife Mothers
Curated by Cyma
Shapiro
Feb. 28 – Apr. 18
Cyma Shapiro collected stories from
women across the country who chose
motherhood after 40. Comprised of
dramatic black and white photographs
and transcribed words, Nurture cel-
ebrates the lives of women who became
new older mothers through IVF, natural
childbirth, adoption, fostering, guardian-
ship, surrogacy and blending stepfami-
lies. Shapiro’s website, www.MidlifeMoth-
ers.org, is dedicated to promoting the
advancement of new midlife mothers
through voice, face and forum. This ex-
hibit is the first of its kind in the country.
Photographs were taken by Shana Sureck and Tracy Cianflone.
Motherhood after 40:
A Conversation
Thursday, March 22
7:30 PM
FREE
Join Elizabeth Gregory, author of Ready:
Why Women Are Embracing the New
Later Motherhood and UH professor, as
she moderates a panel of midlife moth-
ers. Whether through adoption, surroga-
cy, or natural conception, these women
are part of a growing trend of becoming
mothers at a later age. Hear firsthand
about their experiences and how their
lives redefine the traditional patterns of
motherhood and women’s work.
DR. STEPHEN BERK
LECTURES
THE LAST CENTURY THAT SHATTERED THE WORLD
AND TRANSFORMED THE JEWISH PEOPLE
The Last Century that Shattered the World and Transformed the Jewish People
Dr. Stephen Berk is the Henry and Sally Schaffer Chair in Holocaust and Jewish Studies at Union College in Schenectady, NY. Dr. Berk has published and lectured extensively on the intersection of Judaism and modernity, particularly in the fields of Holocaust Studies, anti-Semitism, the American Jewish experience, Soviet and Eastern European Jewry and Jewish/African-American relations. He has been a visiting professor at Williams College, Bennington College, and the State University of New York.
$10 Member / $15 Public (per lecture)$27 Member / $36 Public (series pass)
Roosevelt and the JewsThursday, March 29 • 7:30 PMThis lecture will explore the motivations behind Roosevelt’s policies during the Second World War and how his action or inaction affected the Jewish community during this dark time in human history.
Three Who Made Israel: Weizmann, Ben Gurion and BeginThursday, Apr. 26 • 7:30 PMThis lecture will consider how these early statesmen both created the first modern, Jewish state and changed the socio-political reality of the Middle East and the world post the Second World War.
Steven Spielberg in HistoryThursday, May 24 • 7:30 PM This lecture will explore how three of Spielberg’s films: Schindler’s List, Amistad
and Saving Private Ryan can be used as a valuable window into modern history and how these films changed the world’s perception of the modern Jewish experience.
Center for Jewish Living and Learning Scholar Series
THESE LECTURES ARE MADE POSSIBLE IN PART BY A GRANT FROM HUMANITIES TEXAS, A STATE PARTNER OF THE NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE HUMANITIES.
Maimonides on the Issues
of Our Times
Instructor:
Amy D. Goldstein
Four Wednesdays
Beginning May 9
7:30 PM – 8:30 PM
$36 Member/$45 Public
One of Judaism’s greatest thinkers,
Moses Maimonides, addressed the most
pressing issues of his own times for Jews
- many of which reflect concerns today.
His life experience and writings included
addressing the challenge of radical Islam,
conversion, women’s issues, anti-Semi-
tism, interfaith relations, secular versus
religious education, Jewish communal
responsibility and medical ethics. We will
explore these and other related topics in
Maimonides’ writings such as his Mishneh
Torah, Guide for the Perplexed, various
letters and other writings.
Amy D. Goldstein holds a Masters in Jewish
Cultural History specializing in Sephardic Jewry
from the Jewish Theological Seminary, where she
pursued her doctoral studies. For more than 20
years she applied this knowledge while working
for such organizations as Hadassah, AIPAC, the
Anti-Defamation League and B’nai B’rith Interna-
tional - all the while teaching about the history
and culture of the Jewish people.
For further information or to register for
classes, lectures and programs contact
Nomi Barancik at 713.729.3200, ext. 3288
or at [email protected]
The Menorah at the
Alamo? Unlocking the
Myths and Secrets of
Jewish Identities in the
Americas
Instructor:
Dr. Marie-Theresa Hernandez
Two Wednesdays, April 25 and May 2
7:30 – 8:30 PM
$18 Members/$22 Public
The idea of secret Jews in the southwest
United States is an intriguing subject
that has captivated readers for the past
two decades. In this course, narratives
surrounding the idea of hidden Jews
that came to the Americas from Spain
after 1492 will be discussed and analyzed,
including a story about two menorahs
located in the Alamo museum. The
Mexican colonial period will be presented
as well as present day explorations of
American families who attest to having
a secret Jewish heritage that dates to
Sephardic Spain.
Marie-Theresa Hernandez is Chair of the
University of Houston Jewish Studies
Initiative, as well as undergraduate
director of the World Cultures and
Literatures Program.
J Teen Art Scene: Showcase for e(art)h
Sunday, Apr. 22
3rd Annual Teen Visual Art Exhibition
April 22 – June 1
For the 3rd year, the ERJCC Deutser
Art Gallery will exhibit original works by
local Jewish teenagers. This year, the ex-
hibit will open with the J Teen Art Scene:
Showcase for (e)ART(H), an all-day arts
festival showcasing teenage artistic
talents across many platforms.
Now accepting submissions in several
arts categories until Monday, March 19.
For more information visit jtas.weebly.com.
Purim Flour Frenzy
Sunday, March 4 • 3:00 PM
Advance: $10 ERJCC Member Family /
$12 Public Family
At the Door: $12 ERJCC Member Family /
$14 Public Family
Why dirty your kitchen when you can
have fun in ours? Join us to make
hamantachen from scratch and decorate
your own Purim Megillah for the upcom-
ing holiday. Flour will be everywhere,
but your family will take home a dozen
hand-made hamantaschen that just need
a few minutes in the oven.
Cuba: A Jewish Mission
March 7 – 15, 2012
$2999 per person
(double occupancy)*
Join us on this extraordinary mission
to Cuba and bring support and aid to
the Cuban Jewish community. Meet
the children of the ORT Sunday School
and advance Jewish practices, ideals
and education. Learn first-hand about
today’s Jewish community and share
their dreams for the future. The spirit
of the Jewish community will open your
eyes, heart and mind.
Chai Cotton: Jewish Life in Mississippi
Thursday, May 3 – Sunday, May 6
On this four-day, three-night trip, co-
sponsored by the Texas Jewish Historical
Society and the Evelyn Rubenstein Jewish
Community Center, you will learn about the
history of Jews in this deepest of southern
states. We will visit Mississippi’s oldest
Jewish congregation in Natchez, touring its
beautiful and historic synagogue, spending
Shabbat with a small congregation in the
Mississippi Delta region, birthplace of the
blues. We will also visit the state’s largest
Jewish community, Jackson, and receive
a guided tour of Jewish sites in the city. In
addition, we will also explore the history of
the Civil War, the Civil Rights Movement,
the state-of-the-art B.B. King Blues Museum
in Indianola, the Civil War Battlefield in
Vicksburg, as well as antebellum plantation
homes in Natchez.
Led by Dr. Stuart Rockoff, director of the
History Department at the Goldring/
Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life.
The Book was Better: Jewish
Literature from Stage to Screen
Instructor: Dr. Melissa Weininger, Post-
Doctoral Fellow in the Jewish Studies
Program at Rice University
Five Mondays Beginning March 19
7:00 PM – 8:30 PM
$45 Member/$60 Public
Since the inception of modern cinema,
literature has always been a potent
source of ideas, stories, and themes
for the big screen. Jewish literature in
all its varieties has also spawned many
cinematic adaptations. In this course we
will take a closer look at five different
works of Jewish literature – originally
written in Yiddish, Hebrew, and English
– and their film versions. We will discuss
both the themes and ideas raised by the
literature itself and the similarities and
differences between the texts and the
films; with special attention to the way
that historical context affects cultural
productions.
Melissa Weininger is currently a Post-
doctoral Fellow in Jewish Studies at
Rice University. She received her Ph.D.
in 2010 from The University of Chicago.
Her areas of scholarly interest include
modern Hebrew and Yiddish literature,
gender studies, and Jewish nationalism.
TRAVEL
This two part series is in collaboration with the Jewish Studies Initiative of the University of Houston.
litera
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Summer/Spring 2012
8thAnnual
submerge
yourself in the 8th annual houston jew
ish film
festival
MA
RC
H 6
- 18
Nonprofit Org.
U.S. Postage
P A I DHouston, Texas
Permit No. 6217
EVELYN RUBENSTEIN JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER5601 S. Braeswood | Houston, TX 77096erjcchouston.org
CLOS
ING
NIGH
T
MARCH 6 - 18
8thAnnual
OPENING NIGHT
THE FLOOD (MABUL)
Sunday, March 18 • 7:30 PM • ERJCC
Directed by Guy Nattiv
Israel, 2010, 100 min.
Hebrew with English Subtitles
Drama
KADDISH FOR A FRIEND
(KADDISCH FÜR EINEN FREUND)
Tuesday, March 6 • 7:30 PM • ERJCC
Friday, March 9 • 1:00 PM • ERJCC
Directed by Leo Khasin
Germany, 2011, 94 min.
Arabic, German, Russian with English Subtitles
Drama