Mike Reiss has been speaking publicly for years—about “The Simpsons.”
That’s to be expected. He was the writer-producer and 20-year veteran of the wildly popular Fox Network animated TV show, winning four Emmy Awards for his work.
What Reiss didn’t expect was to present about “The Simpsons” and the Jews.
It started when a friend invited him a few years ago to speak at the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival. About a thousand people showed up to hear him—including some who weren’t fans of the show and others who hadn’t seen it.
“Jews like a good laugh,” is how Reiss explained the turnout.
Since then, he has spoken around the country about Jewish-themed episodes of “The Simpsons”—including the one in which Bart celebrates his bar mitzvah—and the Jewish producers, writers, actors and guest stars of the show.
“There’s enough Jewish material there for an hour or 75-minute multimedia presentation interspersed with clips,” Reiss said.
He is bringing “Jews and Toons” to the 2014 Harrisburg Jewish Film Festival, which opens May 15 at the Jewish Community Center and continues at Midtown Cinema and the State Museum of Pennsylvania through May 22.
Reiss’s presentation will take place in the State Museum auditorium on Sunday, May 18, at 7 p.m. (material appropriate for ages 14 and up), preceded by a reception at 6 p.m.
You don’t have to be Jewish to appreciate “Jews and Toons,” insists Reiss, who also created and wrote the webtoon “Queer Duck” and worked on such screenplays as “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs,” “Horton Hears a Who!” and “The Simpsons Movie.”
For Everyone
Given the broad appeal of The Simpsons, “Jews and Toons” certainly will be a highlight of the weeklong festival. But the filmfest is about so much more than cartoons, continuing a 20-year tradition of appealing to diverse audiences.
“Our mission is to share movies of Jewish and Israeli historical value and about Jewish and Israeli culture and experiences, and not just with Jewish audiences,” said Julie Sherman, festival chairwoman.
“Diverse audiences” also refers to different age and interest groups.
It’s a cliché, Sherman added, but the 2014 festival has “something for everyone, something for the young and old. Among its nine films are documentaries, dramas, comedies.”
This year’s festival includes “Defiance Requiem,” the story of an uprising at the Terezin concentration camp, in which the performance of Verdi’s renowned choral work became both a lifeline for the inmates and an act of rebellion against their Nazi captors. American conductor Murry Sidlin, who returned to Terezin with some of the survivors to recreate this performance in 2006, will hold a Q&A after the screening. A reception will follow.
While sometimes members of the festival planning committee have lively discussions and disagree about the potential films, in the case of “Defiance Requiem,” “everyone agreed to include it,” Sherman noted.
Also part of the festival is “Bethlehem,” Israel’s entry into the Academy Awards in the Foreign Language Film category this past year. Shuttling back and forth between conflicting points of view, it tells the story of the complex relationship between an Israeli Secret Service officer and his teenage Palestinian informant.
“The film has no good guys and no bad guys,” said Sherman. “Everyone is both.”
A classic film with a Jewish theme is included, as well. This year, it’s “Goodbye, Columbus,” a romantic comedy-drama from 1969. The screening will be followed by a discussion of the film and the Philip Roth novel on which it was based.
On the lighter side is “Igor and the Cranes’ Journey,” about a young boy who tries to find his way in life—made in Russia and Israel, with subtitles.
“It’s lyrical, almost like a live fairy tale for all ages,” said Sherman.
“The Dandelions” is a comedy-drama, about the friendship between two lonely children (and starring Isabella Rossellini as a sympathetic psychiatrist) while “Kidon,” a comedy, is almost like an “Israeli ‘Oceans 11,’” she added.
In a much-darker tone is “Aftermath,” a fictional Holocaust-related thriller and drama inspired by the 1941 Jedwabne pogrom, in which Jews were killed both by Nazis as well as some of their Polish neighbors.
A Few Changes
One difference from the festivals of recent years, Sherman pointed out, is the smaller number of films and screenings.
“Audience members complained there were too many—that they can’t come to the movies every day and were missing films,” she explained.
There is also a change in locations. Recently, except for the opening event, most films were at the State Museum. While the museum is still a venue, the Midtown Cinema—a location in the festival’s early years—is included again.
One reason is that Midtown has gone fully digital, a format that is eclipsing DVD and Blu-Ray among movie distributors.
When the festival began, it was unusual for a city the size of Harrisburg to have a Jewish Film Festival at all. Recently, when Sherman attended a Conference of Jewish Film Festivals, a total of 80 festivals were represented—a number of them from smaller cities.
That means that Harrisburg was at the forefront of a growing trend, as the festival’s organizers have long regarded film as a compelling way to connect with a larger audience.
“We want to enlighten and educate, foster dialogue and have a broader conversation,” said Sherman.
2014 JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL
Thursday, May 15 – OPENING EVENT, JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER (3301 N. Front St.)
7 p.m. – “Defiant Requiem,” with guest speaker Marry Sidlin. Reception follows.
Saturday, May 17 – MIDTOWN CINEMA (250 Reily St.)
7:30 p.m. – “Kidon”
Sunday, May 18 – SPECIAL EVENTS, STATE MUSEUM OF PA (300 North St.)
2:30 p.m. – “Goodbye Columbus,” discussion follows
6:30 p.m. – “Jews in Toons,” with guest speaker Mike Reiss
Monday, May 19 – MIDTOWN CINEMA
3 p.m. – “Aftermath”
5:30 p.m. – “Igor and the Cranes’ Journey”
7:30 p.m. – “The Dandelions”
Tuesday, May 20 – MIDTOWN CINEMA
3 p.m. – “Goodbye, Columbus”
5:30 p.m. – “The Gatekeepers”
7:30 p.m. – “Bethlehem”
Wednesday, May 21– MIDTOWN CINEMA
3 p.m. – “Defiant Requiem”
5:30 p.m. – “The Dandelions”
7:30 p.m. – “Aftermath”
Thursday, May 22 – MIDTOWN CINEMA
3 p.m. – “Bethlehem”
5:30 p.m. – “Kidon”
7:30 p.m. – “Igor and the Cranes’ Journey”
Tickets for the JCC opening event and for “Jews in Toons” are $10. Matinees at the Midtown Cinema are $7; all other sessions are $8.
Tickets for all sessions can be purchased at the door (cash or check only at the State Museum); tickets for Midtown Cinema screenings can also be purchased online at www.midtowncinema.com.
For more information, visit the festival website: www.hbgjff.com.
