Contact
Nancy GreenbergWorcester JCC
ngreenberg@worcesterjcc.org
508-756-7109 x 232
When & Where
- Saturday, January 18, 7:30 PM at St.John's High School, Remillard Hall in the Ryken Center, 378 Main Street, Shrewsbury, MA 01545
- Tuesday, January 21, 7:00 PM at The Willows at Worcester, 101 Barry Road, Worcester, MA 01609
- Saturday, January 25, 7:30 PM at St. John's High School
- Sunday, January 26, 2 PM at Notre Dame Academy, Worcester, Cuvilly Auditorium, 425 Salisbury Street, Worcester, MA 01609
- Tuesday, January 28, 7:00 PM at The Willows at Worcester
Nicky's Family
Saturday, January 25, 7:30 PM at St. John's High School
Tickets available at the Door!
The heartwarming, true story of “Britain’s Schindler”, Nicholas Winton, who organized the rescue of 669 Czech children, most of them Jewish, with his own personal kinder transports, just before the outbreak of World War II. Winton, now 104, never spoke about these events with anyone for 50 years. It was not until his wife, Greta, unearthed an old briefcase full of documents that the story was revealed. Since then, hundreds of Winton’s “children” have been found and his“family” numbers in the thousands. His courageous acts continue to inspire people from all over the world to do good deeds. Winner of 13 Audience Favorite Awards from U.S. film festivals We are pleased to welcome “Winton Child” Eva (Fleischmann) Paddock who will take part in a Q & A session following the film.Paddock, who now lives in Cambridge, and her sister, Milena, who resides in the UK, left Prague on the last kinder transport train, which departed on July 29, 1939. Both Eva and Milena appear in the film.
Director: Matej Minac. Czech Republic/Slovak Republic 2013, 96 minutes. Documentary in English
Fee: $12
Besa: The Promise
Sunday, January 26 at 2 PM at Notre Dame Academy, Worcester, Cuvilly Auditorium
Tickets available at the Door!
In 1939, when the rest of Europe turned its back, King Zog announced that all Jews residing in Albania could obtain citizenship and receive asylum. But the Nazi’s invaded, sending the king into exile and putting the Jews in jeopardy. In response Albanian families, most of them Muslim, gave their sacred oath, known as the ancient besa, to protect the refugees. In 2002, American photo journalist Norman Gershman journeyed to Albania to find and photograph Albanians who had rescued Jews during World War II. There he met Rexhep Hoxha, a Muslim-Albanian toy shop owner who had been searching for the Bulgarian Jewish family, the Abadjens, sheltered by his father sixty years earlier. The film features Gershman’s striking portraits, award-winning cinematography, and an original score by Philip Glass. Rezarta Reso, whose family was involved in the rescue effort, will speak following the film. Rezarta was born in Tirana, Albania in 1963 and immigrated to Worcester in 1995. She works at the Worcester Public Library as a youth services librarian. Co-sponsored by The Women’s Guild of St. Mary’s Assumption Albanian Orthodox Church.
Director: Rachel Goslins, USA 2012, 86 minutes. Albanian/Hebrew with English subtitles.
Fee: $12
Central Mass Jewish Film Festival 2014
Celebrating the Jewish Experience Through Film!
The Attack - Please call the JCC to purchase tickets this film
Saturday, January 18 2014, 7:30 PM at St. John's High School
By all appearances, Israeli Palestinian surgeon, Amin Jaafari has it all - a loving wife, an exemplary career, and many Jewish friends. But his world is abruptly shattered when a suicide bombing leaves nineteen dead and the Israeli police inform him that his wife, who also died in the explosion, appears to have been responsible. Convinced of her innocence, Amin abandons the relative security of his adopted homeland and enters the Palestinian territories in pursuit of the truth. Once there, he finds himself in even more dangerous places and situations. Determined, he presses on, seeking answers to questions he never thought he would be asking. Directed by Beirut-born Ziad Doueiri; based on a popular novel by Algerian author Yasmina Khadra.
Director: Ziad Doueiri. Belgium, France, Lebanon, Quatar, 2012, 102 minutes. Arabic and Hebrew with English subtitles.
Fee: $12
Fill the Void (Lemale et ha'halal)
Please call the JCC to purchase tickets this film
Tuesday, January 21 at 7 PM at The Willows at Worcester
Shira, the youngest daughter of a Hasidic family in Tel Aviv is about to be married off to a promising young man, when her older sister tragically dies in childbirth. When it becomes apparent that her bereaved son-in-law, Yochay, may leave the country with her only grandchild, Shira’s mother proposes a match between Shira and Yochay. Shira is left torn between her personal happiness and her duty to her family. Winner of seven Israeli Academy Awards including Best Film, Best Director, and Best Actress. Fill the Void gives an intimate insider’s look into the ultra-Orthodox Hasidic community’s traditional practice of matchmaking. Chana Fogelman will introduce the film. She is a graduate of Bais Rivkah College in Israel and moved to Worcester when she married, twenty three years ago. She has been the Principal of Bais Chana High School, Co-Director of Chabad on Campus Worcester, and President of Worcester Women’s Mikvah Association. She currently leads the Jewish Women’s Circle.
Director: Rama Burshtien. Israel 2012, 90 minutes. Hebrew with English subtitles.
Fee: $8 per person
The ZigZag Kid
Tuesday, January 28 at 7 PM at The Willows at Worcester
Based on the acclaimed novel by Israeli author David Grossman, the Zigzag Kid is a spirited coming of age tale with a dose of romance. Nono dreams of being like his father, a famous police detective, but his free spirit and imagination keep getting him into trouble. With his bar mitzvah just days away, Nono is sent to his visit his Uncle Schmuel, to shape up. On the train, he receives a mysterious letter that leads him to master criminal Felix Glick. The pair set off on an action-packed adventure to the French Riviera, where Nono begins gathering clues about the identity of the mother he never knew. Includes a stellar performance by Isabella Rossellini. Opening Night Film, Boston and San Francisco Jewish Film Festivals 2013.
Director: Vincent Bal, Belgium/Netherlands 2012, 95 minutes. Dutch, English, French with English subtitles. Recommended for ages 11 and up.
Fee: $8
Made possible by a generous grant from the Jewish Federation of Central Mass