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Jewish Community (11)

  • Autobiographical by A.M. Klein
    Autobiographical by A.M. Klein
    Richard Notkin 1965 10 min
    A poet's view of Montréal, as revealed in the rich imagery of his verse. From Klein's poetry this film reveals what he saw and valued, and so presents a many-sided vignette of the old Montréal and the Jewish community he knew as a boy. The poems are read by Alexander Scourby.
  • Baghdad Twist
    Baghdad Twist
    Joe Balass 2007 33 min
    Featuring a unique collection of archival images, home movies and family photographs from Iraq, Baghdad Twist is a short film that pulls back the curtain on Iraq's once thriving Jewish community. Baghdad-born filmmaker Joe Balass takes us on a journey through the fragmented memories of an Arab exile. This powerful collage forms a portrait of a time and place that no longer exists.
  • The Concert Man
    The Concert Man
    Tony Ianzelo 1982 27 min
    This documentary short is a portrait of violinist, composer and dreamer Maurice Zbriger, who shared his music with Montrealers for over half a century. He hired musicians and singers and conducted them in free concerts financed with income from his ownership of Schwartz's, the famous smoked meat restaurant. The Concert Man looks at Zbriger's life, his passion for music and the people who were a part of his dream.
  • The Faith Project - Circling
    The Faith Project - Circling
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    2015 7 min
    Aviva Chernick is a recording, performing and touring musician, a prayer leader and a teacher of voice and prayer at congregations in and around Toronto, Ontario, and as a guest across North America. She anchors her leadership of Jewish worship through private prayers in her home, combining traditional Jewish practice with mindfulness and chanting.
  • I Was a Child of Holocaust Survivors
    I Was a Child of Holocaust Survivors
    Ann Marie Fleming 2010 15 min
    This short animation is director Ann Marie Fleming’s animated adaptation of Bernice Eisenstein’s acclaimed illustrated memoir. Using the healing power of humour, the film probes the taboos around a very particular second-hand trauma, leading us to a more universal understanding of human experience. The film sensitively explores identity and loss through the audacious proposition that the Holocaust is addictive and defining.
  • The Jews of Winnipeg
    The Jews of Winnipeg
    Bill Davies 1973 27 min
    This short documentary tells the story of the first Jewish settlers to Winnipeg, people who fled European persecution at the turn of the century and founded a new community in a Canadian city.
  • The People of the Book
    The People of the Book
    Felix Lazarus 1973 28 min
    This short documentary explores the realities of Canadian Jews dwelling in smaller urban centers. Filmed in the northern Ontario towns of Sudbury, Sault Ste. Marie and North Bay, The People of the Book provides insight into the ancient pattern of ceremony and belief practiced in the synagogue and shows the efforts of Jewish communities to perpetuate their culture and traditions.
  • The Prophet - A Passover Celebration
    The Prophet - A Passover Celebration
    Eva Szasz 1995 10 min
    This animated short depicts a family celebration of Passover as seen through the eyes of two little girls. They identify the traditional symbolic dishes and are treated to a special story by their grandfather that brings to life the meaning of this important Jewish holiday.
  • Perfecting the Art of Longing
    Perfecting the Art of Longing
    Kitra Cahana 2021 12 min
    Cut off from his loved ones due to the pandemic lockdown, a quadriplegic rabbi in a long-term-care facility is filmed remotely by his daughter. Offering powerful meditations on love and hope, Perfecting the Art of Longing shows us what it means to be alive in a state of profound isolation.
  • The Street
    The Street
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    Caroline Leaf 1976 10 min
    This award-winning animation is a poignant interpretation of a short story by Montreal author Mordecai Richler. It makes a strong statement about how many families respond to their old and infirm members. In washes of watercolour and ink, filmmaker Caroline Leaf illustrates reactions to a dying grandmother, capturing family feelings and distilling them into harsh reality.
  • A Sleeping Tree Dreams of Its Roots
    A Sleeping Tree Dreams of Its Roots
    Michka Saäl 1992 1 h 21 min
    A bold and eclectic cinematic style defines the work of filmmaker Michka Saäl and her friend, writer Nadine Ltaif as they journey from childhoods in the Middle East to their chosen home of Montréal. Saäl is Jewish, Ltaif is Arab. Together they overcome the divisive prejudices of their upbringing and embark on an engaging search for clarity, familiarity and historical significance among the immigrant communities of Montréal. Saäl uses super-8 home movies, old photographs, dramatizations and casual conversations to cross personal and political boundaries, giving voice to the varied ancestries of us all. In French with English subtitles.