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 emerging filmmakers.
The festival kicks off with Dust Bowls and Jewish Souls, a documentary looking at the Jewish side of Woody Guthrie’s music, and closes with Matchmaking 2, a sequel to Erez Tadmor’s 2022 Israeli comedy. Other films include the drama Dead Language, an Israel/Czechia/Poland co-production; the French comedy-drama The Safe House; and The Sea, an Israeli film about a 12-year-old Palestinian boy who tries to reach the Mediterranean Sea by himself.
“VIJFF exists to build connections across cultures and communities through cinema,” said Janis Silver, vice-president of the Jewish Community Centre of Victoria (JCCV). “Every film we program is chosen because it speaks to something universal – hope, belonging, resilience, home – seen through a Jewish lens that isn’t always visible on Victoria screens. In a year when so much public conversation about Jewish life gets filtered through conflict, there’s real value in a week where the community can just gather, watch great films together and talk.”
The festival is a project of the JCCV. Opening and closing nights will feature live music, with the Avram McCagherty Trio confirmed for the closing event.
VIJFF has once again invited emerging filmmakers to submit an original 60-second short exploring the themes of hope, belonging and heritage, drawing on the Jewish value of tikkun olam, repair of the world. Selected shorts will screen as part of the festival, and the winner will receive a cash prize.
“Three years in, the shorts competition keeps proving the same thing: you don’t need a big budget or a long runtime to say something meaningful. It’s become one of our favourite parts of the festival, and we’re always glad to see who shows up,” said festival co-director Yaara Nouri.
On Oct. 12, the VIJFF will screen the animated film An American Tail at a community event geared to families. Afterwards, there will be a discussion on immigration, newcomer experiences and stories of belonging.
On Oct. 14, the VIJFF high school program will include a screening of The Commandant’s Shadow (2024), directed by Daniela Völker, for approximately 150 local high school students, with curriculum-aligned discussion materials and a structured post-screening activity.
The documentary tells the story of Hans Jürgen Höss, the son of Rudolf Höss, the commandant of Auschwitz. The younger Höss confronts his father’s legacy and ultimately meets a camp survivor, Anita Lasker-Wallfisch.
“Events like our Thanksgiving Monday matinee are a warm, easy way in for people who might never otherwise walk into a Jewish film festival, and our education programming puts real, human stories in front of high school students who are getting a direct introduction to the diversity of Jewish experience,” said VIJFF co-director Rachel Levee. “I’m so proud of our community for working together to create these kinds of thoughtful, open and welcoming spaces.”
The festival will also offer an online screening program about Oct. 7, 2023, and its aftermath, featuring Always Together, Falling Up and There is Another Way.
Organizers emphasize that VIJFF’s mandate is explicitly non-political, that the festival is meant to broaden awareness of cultural diversity and its intersections with Jewish life and to celebrate film artistry across a diversity of genres and viewpoints.
“This year’s film festival promises to be, as always, a remarkable collection of hard-to-access films that are engaging, entertaining and thought-provoking,” Levee said. “The VIJFF prides itself on curating a festival that has something for everyone while also working to bring films that our audiences wouldn’t have access to otherwise.
“I’d also say that our Jewish community is small but vibrant, so getting a chance to connect with us in our beautiful diversity, watch some great films, shmooze a little – maybe nosh a little, too – and have a mini-vacation on the Island seems like an opportunity that is not to be missed.”
Visitors can take advantage of a special weeknight rate at Magnolia Hotel and Spa, VIJFF’s official hotel partner for 2026. The film events are free, though donations are appreciated: $18 per ticket will help cover costs, and $36 donors will receive a tax receipt from the JCCV. For festival details, visit vijff.ca.
Sam Margolis has written for the Globe and Mail, the National Post, UPI and MSNBC.
