2025 EVENT GRID

Director(s): Noa Elisha
Israel
Year: 2025
Runtime: 17'
Free
International premiere
Comedy, Short
Part of New shorts from Sapir College.
Nov 14 - Nov 23
Nur gets pulled over by a police officer for getting old and underachieving. After glimpsing her not-so-bright future, she’s motivated (mainly by anxiety) to take control of her life, facing reality’s unlikely circumstance.
Why we like this film: A fun comedy about a young person trying to ''adult''.
Director(s): Tom Shoval
Israel, USA
Year: 2025
Runtime: 74'
Texas premiere
Documentary
AJFF interview with Tom Shoval
Nov 14 - Nov 23
Filmmaker Tom Shoval crafts a personal cinematic letter to David Cunio, who was abducted by Hamas from Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, 2023, and has been held hostage in Gaza ever since. Ten years ago, David and his twin brother Eitan starred in Shoval’s award-winning debut feature film Youth, which focused on the powerful bond between brothers and, in a tragic and unimaginable twist of fate, revolved around a kidnapping. Through unedited behind-the-scenes footage and audition tapes from Youth, Shoval builds a multi-layered documentary that explores the inexplicable connections between life and cinema, memory and reality, and the catastrophic consequences of war.
Why we like this film: An extraordinary film, unlike anything we''ve seen before. While the impetus for this movie is the events of October 7th, it isn''t really an October 7th film and is about as apolitical as any film even remotely connected with that event can be. Instead, this is a unique visual letter from the filmmaker to his actor, held in captivitiy for more than two years at this stage. Also, as you watch, you''ll see a remarkable coincidence of life imitating art at times.
Director(s): Yuval Natha
Israel
Year: 2024
Runtime: 15'
Free
International premiere
Animation, Short
Nov 14 - Nov 23
An animated short based on the true story of Jakub Krzepicki, who escaped the Treblinka death camp after 19 days and told his story to Rachela Auerbach.
Why we like this film: Animation creates a strong visual style to this film based upon a true story.
Director(s): Idan Zichlinskey
Israel
Year: 2024
Runtime: 13'
Free
Southwest premiere
Animation, Short
Nov 14 - Nov 23
Shay, a teenager struggling to form real connections in the real world, escapes into an animated world to feel understood and loved. In the virtual world, he finds solace in a relationship with Noa. The tension between his real life and the virtual world leads him to self-discovery and confronting the truth.
Why we like this film: Using shifting images and AI technology, the technical format of this unusual short matches its theme, making the viewer sometimes feeling unsettled.
Director(s): Noga Mer
Israel
Year: 2024
Runtime: 25'
Free
Texas premiere
Drama, Short
Part of New shorts from Sapir College.
Nov 14 - Nov 23
Keren decides to save the life of Abir - her cousin who has been homeless for 30 years. An intimate relationship develops between them that allows her to free herself from the shackles of her empty life and live as she hasn''t experienced in years.
Why we like this film: A good drama about caring for someone you care about with mental health problems.
Director(s): Yoav Potash
Poland, USA
Year: 2025
Runtime: 100'
Austin premiere
Documentary
AJFF interview with filmmaker Yoav Potash.
Nov 14 - Nov 23
Using beautiful hand-drawn animation to bring the past to life, “Among Neighbors” investigates the story of a small, rural town where the longstanding peace between Jewish and Polish neighbors was shattered by World War II. Now, in an era where difficult truths about the past are being silenced for political gain, the film focuses on one of the last living Holocaust survivors from the town, and an aging eyewitness who saw Jews murdered there — six months after the Nazis were defeated. Produced and directed by award-winning filmmaker Yoav Potash (“Crime After Crime,” Sundance Film Festival), “Among Neighbors” is an evocative and heart-pounding murder mystery with urgent political relevance.
Why we like this film: Co-winner of the Austin Jewish Film Festival 2025 Audience Choice Award. At first glance this appears to be another holocaust testimony, but the film is so much more. Ten years in the making, Yaacov Goldstein''s journey from a small Polish town to life in Israel is a riveting story, expertly told through interviews and animation. At the same time the film deals with important testimony from some of his Polish neighbors about actions perpetrated by some Polish villagers agains the Jews. The film has an unexpected and very touching ending providing a element of mystery to this excellently crafted movie.
Director(s): Jonathan Handelsman
Israel
Year: 2025
Runtime: 27'
Free
International premiere
Drama, Short
Part of New shorts from Sapir College.
Nov 14 - Nov 23
Anna, a nursing assistant, works as a caregiver to Maxim, a bitter Holocaust survivor and former painter. Living together in a small, aging house, she witnesses his daily struggle with dementia - a condition he stubbornly refuses to acknowledge. When his doctor presents a promising treatment option, Anna embarks on a creative quest to raise the necessary funds, revealing the unexpected depths of their relationship.
Why we like this film: A well made drama about the complex relationship between a Holocaust survivor and his caregiver.
Director(s): C.A. MacFinn
USA
Year: 2024
Runtime: 22'
Free
Texas premiere
Animation, Short
Nov 14 - Nov 23
In the world of the Ottoman Sultans, a poor Jewish boy from Jerusalem makes an unimaginable desert journey to Cairo, outsmarting a rapacious caravan leader, to save his mother and siblings from disaster. He has nine days…
Why we like this film: A sweet, simple story explaining how the main character goes from the name of Ari (Lion in Hebrew) to Ariel, Lion of G-d.
Director(s): Sari Azoulay Turgeman
Israel
Year: 2025
Runtime: 12'
Free
US premiere
Drama, Short
Nov 14 - Nov 23
Bubba, a mannequin that is supposed to look 10 years old, is displayed in a clothing store, with the aim of eliminating the inventory but she almost wipes out the store.
Why we like this film: How an inanimate object can lead to the objectification of young women. The filmmakers use an usual perspective to provide extra nuance to this film.