Amherst Dipson Theater

Vishniac  (Documentary)   U.S.  2023  90 min. Director: Laura Bialis Roman Vishniac is best known for having traversed Eastern Europe from 1935 through 1938, on assignment to photograph Jewish life. Less than a decade later these communities would be wiped out and Vishniac's iconic photographs would provide the last visual records of an entire world. Through his photographs, we see Jewish life -- in Eastern European shtetls and in Weimar-era Berlin -- and witness the Nazi rise to power. After the war, his documentation continued with photographs of Berlin in ruins and Jewish children in Displaced Persons camps. Vishniac was also a respected scientist who made considerable contributions in the field of microscopic photography. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS

(Documentary) U.S. 2024 86 min. R Directors: Heather Dune Macadam,Beatriz Calleja 999: The Forgotten Girls of the Holocaust reveals the untold story of 999 unmarried, young Slovak Jewish women initially registered for government service in a purported shoe factory, only to be tragically sent to Auschwitz. Who were these young women? Why were they chosen? How did a handful survive over three years in the death camps? Survivors reveal the truth of this almost completely ignored piece of women's history, the First Official Jewish Transport to Auschwitz. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS

(Drama)    Israel     2023    108 min.  PG    Hebrew Director: Ayelet Menahemi In Israel’s official entry for the Academy Awards for Best International Feature Film, Seven Blessings revolves around an eventful Jewish Moroccan family wedding and the traditional blessings that are pronounced during the ceremony, again at the reception, and then again for the next seven nights with loved ones hosting special dinners in the couple’s honor. Behind the facade of joie de vivre and togetherness, there are secrets, lies, and a painful old wound that forces them to confront the past entwined in this acclaimed story about fury, forgiveness, and food. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS

Running On Sand

(Drama/Action) U.S. 2024 94 min. PG-13 Director: Salvador Litvak Guns & Moses is an action thriller set in the High Desert of California that follows Rabbi Mo Zaltzman, a Chabad rabbi, who through a series of violent events is forced to learn how to handle a gun to protect his family and his community. The film features performances by Dermot Mulroney, and Christopher Lloyd in a memorable turn as a Holocaust survivor. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS

(Documentary/Biography) U.S. 2023 97 min. NR Director: Ron Frank The star of "Willy Wonka", "Blazing Saddles", "Young Frankenstein" and many more is remembered by those who knew and loved him in this documentary. Features Mel Brooks, Alan Alda, Carol Kane, and others. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS

(Comedy/Drama/Romance) Israel 2023 121 min. PG Director: Avi Nesher Set in the 1980s, this epic tale with hints of Almodóvar melodrama revolves around Amitay, a struggling writer living near a monkey park from which the movie gets its name. Envious of his more celebrated colleagues and yearning for Tamar, his childhood love now widowed, Amitay conceives a plan to revive his literary reputation. Based on a true event, this is the 8th Avi Nesher film to grace this festival, and like all the others, it is moving, amusing, and beautifully filmed. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS

(Documentary) Columbia 2024 100 min. NR Spanish/Hebrew Director: Gloria Nancy Monsalve This insightful documentary follows an Orthodox Jewish family’s difficult quest to leave Colombia, a country where Jews are rare, and immigrate to Israel to make aliyah. Featuring stunning visuals of a mikvah ceremony and unexpected moments of humor, this documentary takes viewers inside one family’s harrowing life path. Ultimately, this immigration story is about personal growth and spiritual resilience. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS

(Drama/Romance) Austria.Germany 2024 98 min. PG German Directors: Judith Kaufmann, Georg Maas It’s 1923 and while Franz Kafka doesn’t know it yet, it’s nearly his last year on earth. His struggle with tuberculosis has led him to a convalescent care facility on the Baltic Coast and serendipitously to Dora Diamant. A worldly and wise writer, she is working in a Jewish community nearby when their paths cross, and their great love story takes off. Through the power of love, the last year of Franz Kafka’s life becomes his happiest. Beautifully filmed in Berlin and the Baltic. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS

(Drama/Comedy) Hungary 2024 85 min. Hungarian PG Director: Adam Breier Tamás, an aging boxing coach, gets along well with everyone but his own son. Estranged since Iván became religious and moved to Israel, there had been no reason to mend their severed relationship. Tamás has lived happily in Budapest with his beloved wife, Zsuzsa, but when she dies unexpectedly, Iván resurfaces and insists on a proper Shiva. Reluctant to accept, Tamás realizes it may be his only opportunity to meet his grandson Ariel. Over the course of the week of mourning, past conflicts resurface and they embark on an unexpected journey of self reflection and reconciliation. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS