Caution: Story contains graphic descriptions. Toronto filmmaker Igal Hecht has made his full-length documentary of the mass atrocities along Israel’s highways on Oct. 7, 2023, free to stream online. The Killing Roads is a grotesque film – and that is…
The 12th annual Victoria International Jewish Film Festival runs Oct. 10 to 15 at the Vic Theatre, with some content available online. This year’s festival offers eight feature-length films, a curated international shorts program, live music and a competition for…
Prior to the Holocaust, 3.3 million Jews were living in Poland. By 1945, only 300,000 to 350,000 had survived. Haya Newman’s parents were among the survivors, and she has documented their stories in film. In 2014, she completed Wolbrom: My…
On a late summer afternoon in Toronto, with thin light slipping through the blinds, Ieden Wall sits alone in his home editing suite, surrounded by scattered notes and the hum of aging equipment. He looks exhausted – the kind of…
Jackie Tohn, left, and Sarah Podemski play longtime best friends Nomi and Mara in The Floaters. (still from film) The Vancouver Jewish Film Festival opens on April 30 with the award-winning The Ring (Israel/Hungary) and closes on May 10 with…
Jews are not a homogeneous group in ritual, beliefs, thought or experience. We are diverse, coming from many different places, speaking countless languages, putting our unique spins on food, music and other cultural aspects. We are both a religion and…
Alix West Lefler plays Frida in The Fast Runner. (photo from thefastrunnerfilm.com) The Fast Runner, a 15-minute short from director David Bercovici-Artieda is about a young girl’s courage during the Holocaust. (See jewishindependent.ca) The film screens April 19, 7 p.m.,…
The stars of Stacey Tenenbaum’s documentary Tough Old Broads, playing at VIFF Centre March 14 and 17: Kathrine Switzer, left, Sharon Farmer, centre, and Siila Watt-Cloutier. (screenshots from film) If you’re feeling hopeless about the state of the world –…
The thriller Shelter, set in Germany, features Mona, a Lebanese woman, and Naomi, an Israeli Mossad agent sent to protect the informant while she recovers from plastic surgery for her new identity. Mona and Naomi are together for two weeks…
As the owner of the 95-year-old Jewish Independent, I know full well that our Jewish community is built on the shoulders of those came before us. It is upon this foundation that we continue to grow, keeping our institutions going,…
