We are the Dreamers of Dreams…

MEDIA RELEASE

14 September 2016

At JIFF 2016

We are the Dreamers of Dreams…

With 68 exceptional, international premiere features and documentaries and 7 shorts, the Jewish International Film Festival (JIFF) proudly returns to Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane and Auckland from late October, and tours to Canberra for the first time in the Festival’s history.

JIFF tours to Auckland, New Zealand with a curated selection of 15 features and documentaries; screening on November 10, 12, 13, 19 & 20 at the Academy Cinemas. Tickets go on sale September 30 and will be available for purchase at www.jiff.com.au Embracing a global selection of features and documentaries from 19 countries including Argentina, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Israel, Morocco, the Netherlands, Poland, South Africa, Spain, UK and USA, the Festival’s 2016 season continues to celebrate the infinite diversity of this fascinating culture through drama, humour and suspense.

Full program details will be revealed at the JIFF 2016 Program Launch Event: to be celebrated with an exclusive preview screening of Woody Allen’s charming new film, Cafe Society. Tickets to this September 29 event at Academy Cinemas, Auckland, are on sale now. The highlights of JIFF 2016 are many and include several outstanding feature dramas from Germany such as The People Vs Fritz Bauer, The Diary of Anne Frank and Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe.

Winning in 6 categories, including Best Feature Film, Best Direction and Best Screenplay, at the 2016 German Film Awards, The People Vs Fritz Bauer is a historical thriller that recounts the story of Attorney General Fritz Bauer who covertly sought the help of Mossad to bring Hitler’s henchman, Adolf Eichmann, to justice.

In The Diary of Anne Frank, the filmmakers have, for the first time since Anne’s inspiring memoir has been brought to screen, drawn upon her uncensored diary, which has resulted in arguably the most poignant, yet powerful dramatisation of her life to date.

In his day, Austrian author, Stefan Zweig was the most-translated writer in Europe. But sensing the continent’s decline, Zweig left his native country in 1934, never to return. His self-imposed exile is movingly captured in director Maria Schrader’s Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe. The finest contemporary cinema from Israel will again be represented at JIFF, including many titles that are set to dominate the 2016 Ophir Awards (Israeli Oscars). Amongst those to have received multiple Ophir nominations are the features Sand Storm (12 nominations) and One Week and a Day (7 nominations).

In Sand Storm, which won the Grand Jury Prize in the World Cinematic Dramatic section of Sundance 2016, a mother and daughter from a Bedouin village struggle to adapt to a changing world, whilst One Week and a Day, which premiered at this year’s Cannes’ Critics Week, offers a hilarious, yet affecting look at two parents attempting to re-adjust following the passing of their son.

A heartfelt comedy set against the backdrop of Purim, The Tenth Man, from Argentinian filmmaker Daniel Burman (Lost Embrace), sees Ariel (Alan Sabbagh in his Tribeca Film Festival Award-winning performance) summoned, by his oft-distant father, to his childhood home in the bustling Jewish quarter of Buenos Aires, where they attempt to reconnect.

Renowned for its superb documentaries, the 2016 incarnation of JIFF will not disappoint and includes Jerry Lewis: The Man Behind the Clown, Arthur Miller, Man of the Century, and The Settlers, which explores the history of settlements in the West Bank. Closing out the festival is The Last Laugh, a provocative debate over comedy’s ultimate taboo…the Holocaust. The 2016 Jewish International Film Festival AUCKLAND 10, 12&13, 19&20 November at Academy Cinemas, Auckland. Tickets on sale September 30. Visit the official website at: www.jiff.com.au

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