By Emily K. Alhadeff, Associate Editor, JTNews
October 11-20
Seattle Polish Film Festival
The Seattle Polish Film Festival features two Jewish-themed films. “Siberian Exile” (2013, 125 mins.) follows Poles, Ukrainians, and Jews deported to the Soviet Union in 1939. Through the eyes of young Staszek, the exiles face starvation and the ruthless elements in a brutal coming of age tale. In addition to learning survival skills, Staszek has to choose between Jewish Zinnia and Russian Luybk. In “Redcurrants” (2011, 34 mins.) Swedish resident, academic and journalist Leo Kantor reenacts his life story: His childhood in Russia in World War II, his adoption by his Polish-Jewish stepfather, and the witnessing of Germans leaving Poland after the war that shaped his memories.
Films are in Polish with English subtitles. Tickets $5 for SIFF members, $10 for non-members. At SIFF Cinema Uptown, 511 Queen Anne Ave. N., Seattle. For more information visit www.polishfilms.org.
Tuesday, October 15 at 7 p.m.
Black is a Color
Art exhibit and lecture
Stan (Shlomo) Lebovic’s photo-realist artwork depicts the Holocaust’s profound and indelible impact on the generations born from the horror. Dark, yet colorful, surreal compositions seem to infuse light and hope into the darkest images of modern Jewish history.
Free. At The Seattle Kollel, 5305 52nd Ave. S, Seattle. For more information contact Rabbi Avrohom David at info@seattlekollel.org or 206-722-8289 or seattlekollel.org. For more information on the artist, visit blackisacolor.com.
Wednesday, October 16 at 7 p.m.
Jezebel: The Untold Story of the Bible’s Harlot Queen
Author talk
Lesley Hazleton, author of “Mary” and “The First Muslim,” will talk about her biography of Jezebel. The book was published six years ago, but the “accidental theologist” is still “half in love” with the Bible’s villain harlot queen whose history she reclaimed. Hazelton has given a TED Talk and is the recipient of a Literature Genius Award from The Stranger. Dessert reception follows presentation.
Free. At Temple B’nai Torah, 15727 NE Fourth St., Bellevue. For more information, contact Shelly Goldman at sgoldman@a.templebnaitorah.org or 425-603-9677, or visit www.templebnaitorah.org. For more information on Lesley Hazelton, visit accidentaltheologist.com.
Through October 20
Seattle Lesbian and Gay Film Festival
Film
The 18th annual Seattle Lesbian and Gay Film Festival features one hyperlocal and two Israeli shorts. Benignly titled “Summer Vacation” (Israel, 2012) can only be a set up for the problems that ensue when family-man runs into his past while vacationing with his family. “Little Man” (UK/Israel, 2012) is director Eldar Rapaport’s third film based on tense relationships between men, and another Israeli foray into the suspense/horror genre. And “Pinko Fag Jew” (U.S., 2000) depicts the surprisingly little-known life of Faygele ben Miriam, the Seattle-based activist of the 1970s who pioneered for gay marriage way before his time.
“Summer Vacation” (22 mins.) screens with Boys Shorts Sunday, October 13 at 2 p.m. at the Harvard Exit Theatre, 807 E Roy St., Seattle.
“Little Man” (22 mins.) screens with Scream Queens Wednesday, October 16 at 9:30 p.m. at the Northwest Film Forum, 1515 12th Ave., Seattle.
“Pinko Fag Jew” (13 mins.) screens with Radical Faerie Short Film Festival Saturday, October 12 at 4:30 p.m. at the Northwest Film Forum.
For more information visit www.threedollarbillcinema.org/2013.
Tuesday, October 22 at 7 p.m.
Hannah Arendt
Film screening
In partnership with the University of Washington Germanic Department and the Seattle Jewish Film Festival, the Stroum Jewish Studies Program will screen “Hannah Arendt,” the 2012 biopic about the German-American Jewish philosopher and her controversial coverage of the Eichmann trials in Jerusalem.
At 220 Kane Hall, University of Washington, Seattle. For more information contact Lauren Spokane at laurenjs@uw.edu or 206-543-0138, or visit stroumjewishstudies.org/events.
Saturday and Sunday, October 26 and 27
SJFF Best of Fest Family Film Series
Film screenings
On Saturday at 7:30 p.m., head to the Rainier Valley Cultural Center for “Sixty Six,” a cute comedy about a hapless Bar Mitzvah boy whose big day conflicts with the World Cup in 1966. Helena Bonham Carter plays his loving Jewish mother. On Sunday at 2 p.m., check out the award-winning animated feature “The Rabbi’s Cat,” about an Algerian feline in the 1920s who actually wants to have a Bar Mitzvah. Then at 4:30 p.m., enjoy “My Dad is Baryshnikov,” about a Russian ballet student who convinces his peers that he’s the illegitimate son of esteemed dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov.
All films at the Rainier Valley Cultural Center, 3515 S Alaska St., Seattle. $5. For more information contact Pamela Lavitt at sjff@sjcc.org or 206-388-0832, or visit bit.ly/FamilyFilms.