2025 EVENT LIST
Short
Free
2024, 2025
358'
Mixed
All the shorts in the festival, including those from Sapir College.
Virtual
Nov 14
Southwest premiere
Drama
Director(s): Shai Carmeli-Pollak
2025
93'
Israel
Khaled, a 12-year-old boy from a Palestinian village, gets the chance to see the sea for the first time in his life on a school trip. But when the class reaches a military checkpoint, the soldiers claim Khaled's permit is invalid and send him back home, while his classmates continue their trip. Deeply disappointed, Khaled sets out to the sea on his own, even though he doesn’t know the way and doesn’t speak Hebrew. When his father, Ribhi, an undocumented laborer working in Israel, learns that his son is missing, he leaves his job in search for him—risking arrest and the loss of his livelihood.
Why we like this film: Winner of 5 Israeli Academy Awards and Israel''s submission to the upcoming 2026 Oscars, this is an excellent drama. But it angered the Israeli culture minister who vowed to pull all government funding from future Israeli Academy Awards. Watch the film and consider for yourself if this ought to be considered a controversial film or not.
Virtual
Nov 14
Southwest premiere
Documentary
Director(s): Barry Avrich
2025
95'
Canada
Grandfather and retired Israeli general Noam Tibon rescues his family from Hamas terrorists invading their home during the October 7, 2023, massacre—a coordinated assault on Israel sparking an ongoing conflict.
Why we like this film: Co-winner of the Austin Jewish Film Festival 2025 Audience Choice Award. Maybe you caught the controversy about this film that was invited to the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), then uninvited (supposedly because they didn't have Hamas's permission to use the livestreamed content from their attack), then reinvited, protested at, and ultimately winning the TIFF audience choice award. The film simultaneously tells the story of October 7th and the extraordinary rescue by retired Major General Noa Tibon of his family.
Virtual
Nov 14
Southwest premiere
Documentary
Director(s): Katharina Otto-Bernstein
2025
106'
Germany, USA
Aged 100 years old at the time of the interviews in the film but still sharp as a tack, Sichel recounts his years as a CIA spymaster in Berlin, Washington, and Hong Kong with a frank directness and a gleefully wicked sense of humour. As a German-Jewish man who fled Europe with his family before World War II broke out and worked as a covert operative during the early days of the Cold War, Sichel’s wisdom and insight into today’s global conflicts carry significant weight.
Why we like this film: James Bond is a fictional character, but Peter Sichel, the ''Jewish James Bond,'' was a very real person with an absolutely extraordinary life. A centenarian at the time of filming, Sichel recounts tales of intrigue and espionage during most of the latter part of the 20th Century. It''s riveting!
Virtual
Nov 14
Texas premiere
Comedy
Director(s): Rachel Israel
2025
101'
USA
Freshly ousted from her rock band, Nomi takes a last-resort job from her best friend Mara at their childhood Jewish summer camp. As camp director, Mara contends with a busted septic system, and she tasks Nomi to supervise a group of outsider teens called the floaters. When their rival camp—led by Mara and Nomi's nemesis Daniel—issues a high-stakes challenge with prize money on the line, Nomi pushes the limits and loses Mara’s trust. Now, Nomi and the Floaters must overcome their differences and outperform their rivals to keep the camp alive. Framed through multigenerational perspectives, this offbeat comedy captures the rich diversity of a Jewish summer camp and explores the conflict between leaving one’s mark and building connection.
Why we like this film: Anyone who has ever been (or sent someone else!) to a Jewish summer camp will connect with this new, independent comedy about a Jewish Summer camp and its quirky leaders and campers.
Virtual
Nov 14
Southwest premiere
Comedy, Drama
Director(s): Ken Scott
2025
102'
Canada, France
In 1963, Esther gave birth to Roland, the youngest sibling of a large family. Roland was born with a clubfoot that prevented him from standing. Against everyone's advice, she promised her son that he would be able to walk just like everyone else and have a wonderful life. From that moment on, Esther devoted herself fully to ensuring this promise came true. Spanning decades of hardships and miracles, this film is the story of an incredible destiny and the greatest love of all: a mother's love for her child.
Why we like this film: A beautiful, funny, touching film to kick off the festival that everyone should love! The film will be preceded by a reception with food, drink, and live music.
Virtual
Nov 14
Austin premiere
Documentary
Director(s): Ravit Markus
2025
72'
Israel
Wheelchair badminton champion, Nina Gorodetsky, has her first and maybe last chance to make it to the Paralympics. However, she is negotiating a ticking biological clock both as an athlete and as a woman. Amidst debating what would she be willing to sacrifice to realize her Olympic dream, everything changes: the stopwatches of all the world’s athletes come to a screeching halt due to a worldwide pandemic. ''Nina is an Athlete'' tracks her unpredictable three-year journey to defy the odds and fulfill her athletic aspirations while staying true to her maternal desires.
Why we like this film: Co-winner of the Austin Jewish Film Festival 2025 Audience Choice Award. This film is about so many things—the challenges of balancing work and family life, disability, sport, a non-political look at the life of someone representing Israel on the world stage.
Virtual
Nov 14
Austin premiere
Drama
Director(s): Klaus Härö
2025
85'
Austria, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Sweden
The gripping story of Jewish refugees seeking safety in Finland during WWII. As Nazi influence grows, the Finnish-Jewish businessman Abraham Stiller risks everything to protect the refugee community. This powerful film showcases courage, resilience, and the fight for hope amidst overwhelming adversity.
Why we like this film: A well told drama of what happended to a Jewish community from an unusual place during WWII—Finland.
Virtual
Nov 14
North American premiere
Drama
Director(s): Judith Colell
2025
100'
Belgium, Spain
It's 1943. and Franco has blocked the path of the Jews fleeing Nazi oppression over the Pyrenees mountains. At the border crossing in a small village, Manel Grau, a civil servant with a Republican past, decides to go against the orders of his superiors and aid the Jews across the border, with the help of Juliana, a fellow inhabitant of the village, and Jérôme, a French smuggler. Between them, they will start a crusade to help as many Jews as they possibly can. It is then that Manel will find himself embroiled in a dangerous odyssey that will awaken in him and his wife, Mercé, old ghosts of the still-recent Spanish Civil War.
Why we like this film: A gripping WWII drama with a delicious twist at the end. This is NOT a Holocaust movie.