AJFF: The Unorthodox
Austin Jewish Film Festival presents: The Unorthodox, a film by Eliran Malka
Israel, 2018, Biography/Docu-Drama/Comedy/Social Justice, 92 min
Hebrew, Yiddish with English subtitles
Starring: Shuli Rand, Yaacov Cohen, Golan Azulai, Yoav Levi, Or Lumbrozo, Tzahi Grad, Yigal Naor, Shifi Aloni
Wednesday, November 6th, 2019, 7:30pm
Regal Arbor Cinemas
9828 Great Hills Trail, Austin TX 78759
Badge and individual ticket information HERE
Synopsis
When Yakov Cohen’s daughter is expelled from school for ethnic reasons, he decides to fight back. It’s 1983, and Yakov, a printer in Jerusalem, is just a regular guy. He has no knowledge of politics, no money, no connections, and no political experience. But he does have the will and the passion to take action, and a belief that he and other Sephardic Jews should be able to hold their heads up high. Yakov brings two friends along, and together they start the first ethnic political group in Jerusalem, with an operation characteristic of the people they represent: not the suit-wearing types, but rather the people working their way up from the bottom. Their operation is informal, full of love for their fellow man, and animated by a sense of humor and a great deal of rage.
THE UNORTHODOX is about the founding of the Israeli Shas party, which is today the major power broker in Israeli politics. Although it is in Hebrew, the subject matter is how the Sephardi Jews in Israel (those of Spanish and Portuguese descent) felt like they were being overlooked by the political establishment in Israel, which at that time was Ashkenazi (Jews from Central and Eastern Europe) dominated. The film is not only educational, but humorous also. Starring Shuli Rand (USHPIZIN, 2005).
The feature film will be preceded by the short film A THOUSAND KISSES, directed by Richard Goldgewicht.
Cine Las Americas International Film Festival co-presents this film as a supporter of the Austin Jewish Film Festival (AJFF). AJFF is not just about excellent films. They seek to expand the Jewish conversation and make cross-cultural alliances throughout our world-class city, Austin, Texas. AJFF seeks to promote cultural understanding and tolerance while presenting the best Jewish films from the U.S. and around the world.