THE GENEVA INTERNATIONAL JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL 2018 #GIJFF
14TH-18TH MARCH 2018
by Sarah Scaddan
The 8th Geneva International Jewish Film Festival takes place from the 14th-18th March 2018 and as in previous years, gives the Geneva public the opportunity to enjoy a selection of films focusing on Jewish themes and culture. Last year’s Festival sold out quickly, so don’t hesitate too long.
This year’s films are screened at Ciné 17, Cinerama Empire or Pathé Rex in the Confederation Centre. For a full programme of films and to buy tickets click here.
The highlights of this year’s festival include:
MR & MRS ADELMAN
OPENING NIGHT – 14TH MARCH 2018
The opening night is the film Mr & Mrs Adelman, a comic drama about a particular married life and its ups and downs. In Mr & Mrs Adelman, the young and intellectual Sarah falls madly for a promising young writer, Victor, son of a wealthy bourgeois family who, dissatisfied with his choice of career and girlfriend, proceed to cut him off without a penny.
Screening at Pathé Rex at 8.30pm in French with English subtitles.
THE BOY DOWNSTAIRS (drama/comedy/romance)
15TH MARCH 2018
Diana, an aspiring writer, is back in Manhattan after two years in London. She moves into a new apartment only to find that the ex-love of her life is living downstairs. Followed directly by the film Jewish Blind Date.
Screening at Ciné 17 at 6.30pm in English.
BOMBSHELL: THE HEDY LAMARR STORY (documentary)
18TH MARCH 2018
Austrian-Jewish Hollywood star Hedy Lamarr was known for her beauty (both Snow White and Cat Woman were based on her iconic image), scandalous personal life and raunchy screen persona. But it was her biggest role as the inventor of frequency hopping during the war that slipped under the radar. Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story, produced by Susan Sarandon and narrated by Diane Kruger, pays tribute to the star whose brilliant mind rivalled her looks, and gave us the basis for the Wi-Fi and Bluetooth technologies that keep us connected today.
Screening at Ciné 17 at midday in English.
PAST LIFE (drama)
18TH MARCH 2018
Two Israeli sisters reveal a dark secret about their father’s past in wartime Poland in feted Israeli director Avi Nesher’s latest film. Beautifully shot with fine performances from Nelly Tagar (Zero Motivation) and rising Israeli star Joy Rieger, the film explores the lingering feeling of guilt endured by survivors, complicated family dynamics and Israel’s fast-shifting cultural landscape in the tumultuous 1970s.
Screening at Ciné 17 at 8.30pm in English and Polish/German with English and French subtitles).
The Geneva International Film Festival is organised by UK Jewish Film and annual festivals take place in the UK, Geneva and Zurich. For its eighth year the Geneva Jewish International Film Festival will be presenting a special screening for schools, No Place on Earth which brings to light an extra-ordinary true tale of survival that remained untold for decades, about Jewish families hiding from the Nazis in a cave system in Ukraine.
To book your tickets and learn about the full programme of events and speakers, click here.