As the new director of the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival, Don Adams knew coming in he had some big shoes to fill. After all, during her 19 years at the helm, outgoing director Janis Plotkin had turned the festival into a premier cinematic event, the largest and most respected Jewish film festival in the world.
And while those associated with the festival — staff, sponsors, donors and movie buffs alike — voice nothing but appreciation for Plotkin and her accomplishments, there is a new sheriff in town, and he wants to make a few changes.
In addition to regular screenings, one innovation this year: free matinees he calls “Film for Thought.” But those events are not without controversy. They take place on Saturday afternoons, during Shabbat.
In years past, the Jewish Film Festival had refrained from scheduling any events on Friday nights and Saturday afternoons. Then, a few years ago, that policy was reversed, sparking indignation from more religiously observant quarters about screenings on the Sabbath as well as having events where money changed hands.
“We did get some complaints,” notes Adams, referring to the old policy. “Some people felt uneasy about doing financial transactions on Shabbat in order to see a film. Then there are there are others in the twilight zone, between being secular and shomer Shabbos [observant].
“The ‘Film for Thought’ series was a compromise [by making it free]. These events feature deep content and expanded discussion on themes. It’s kind of like the Torah study of film.”
Not everyone is OK with the compromise, however. Rabbi Shlomo Zarchi of S.F.’s Congregation Chevra Thilim sees the Saturday screenings as a slap in the face.
“It’s beyond violating the spirit of Shabbat,” he says. “Observance of Shabbat is the cornerstone of Judaism. To spin this as consideration of Shabbat observance is somewhat intellectually bankrupt.”
Nevertheless, Adams and company will press on. Among the movies screened at “Film for Thought” matinees: personal cinematic essays on the situation in Israel such as “Local Angel” and “Galoot” (Hebrew for “exile”), both hard-hitting documentaries about the intifada.
According to Adams, demand for Jewish-themed films has never been greater, especially in these times of increased Middle East tensions and rising global anti-Semitism. With opening night of the 23rd annual San Francisco Jewish Film Festival now less than a week away, Adams is focused on ensuring that the nearly three-week event gets five stars from attendees.
It shouldn’t be too hard, given the diverse and provocative line-up of 50-plus films at four venues. The event runs through July 24 in San Francisco, moving to Berkeley, Palo Alto and San Rafael, where it closes Aug. 4.
For this year’s festival, Adams sought to book films that reflect the broadest spectrum of Jewish life and thought. The line-up includes works from such far-flung locales as Ireland, Azerbaijan, Poland, Holland, Africa, France, Germany, Australia, Guyana, Chile and Argentina, and, of course, Israel.
There’s a baker’s dozen or so from the USA as well, including “Manhood,” the opening night main event. A sequel to writer-director Bobby Roth’s 2001 screen drama “Jack the Dog,” the new film re-examines three generations of a Jewish American family in crisis. It stars Nestor Carbonell (“Suddenly Susan”), John Ritter, Janeane Garafolo and Bonnie Bedelia.
As much as he admired Roth’s work, Adams had his doubts about whether “Manhood” should be the keynote film. “Manhood” takes a regular American family experience and puts it in a Jewish frame,” he says. “It doesn’t hit you over the head with its Jewish content, so when we were programming, we had many interesting discussions about the issues in this film.”
The movie made it to this year’s Sundance Festival.
Following Thursday’s opening night reception, screening and Q&A session with director Roth and several of the film’s stars at San Francisco’s Castro Theatre, this year’s festival gets under way in earnest.
With France now seemingly the locus of a new wave of European anti-Semitism, the festival’s French entries this year are particularly intriguing. They include “The Last Letter,” the first narrative film from documentarian Frederick Wiseman. Based on a stage play, the film recounts the true story of a Russian Jewish woman, imprisoned by the Nazis, composing a goodbye letter to her son (the actual letter was recovered after the war).
Another likely must-see event for longtime festival fans: the return of Plotkin, who hosts “Sharing the Screen: 20 Years of Israeli and Palestinian Cinema at the Jewish Film Festival.” She will screen a highlight reel of memorable scenes from past festival films, followed by a discussion.
Sometimes, says Adams, those discussions are the best part of the event. “The mission of our organization,” he affirms, “is not just to show the best in Jewish cinema but to illuminate the question of what it means to be a Jew in today’s world, and to serve as a catalyst for discussion.”
That means more than a few weeks of screenings and Q&A sessions. To bring about his full vision, Adams plans to inaugurate a series of new programs and services in the months ahead, changes that will make the festival more participatory.
On his wish list, the establishment of formal membership in the festival organization, “so people could belong,” he says.
On the programming side, Adams sees potential for more communal uses of Jewish media. For example, expanded Yiddish and Russian language programming, and greater cross-cultural efforts reaching out to African Americans, Hispanics and so-called Black Hebrews.
That means more year-round programming. “The festival itself is pretty full now,” says Adams. “so we’ll be looking for more venues and other organizations we can work with, from JCCs to cultural groups to the Jewish Home.”
Adams would seem to be especially qualified to lead the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival into its next era. A native of South Dakota, he recalls: “From my house you could see Nebraska. It was all farm country, deadwood and Indian reservations. My family was WASP, yet I always felt I wasn’t in my spiritual home, so I patched together a spiritual existence.”
That meant exploring traditions as varied as Native American and Zen Buddhism.
Now a Jew-by-choice, Adams has been active in Jewish communal life, serving as treasurer of a congregation in Seattle.
He also learned Yiddish and made Torah study a regular feature of his life.”I found a home in Judaism,” he says. “When I began to study, it was like finally finding the structure I’d tried to create for myself out of bits and pieces of other traditions.”
In January, Adams moved to the Bay Area to join the festival, combining his twin passions of Judaism and the arts. He believes the best is yet to come — for him and for film festival fans.
“For people who find their connection to Judaism through Jewish culture, the festival is a major institution,” he says. “There’s a strong feeling of connection between our core audience and the Jewish Film Festival, expressed in deep personal terms. Some have said to me, ‘The festival is my Rosh Hashanah, and the Castro Theatre is my shul.'”