Carmel Jewish Film Festival Celebrates 10th Anniversary with Award-Winning Movies, Speakers, Receptions March 7 – 22, 20

1. Carmel Jewish Film Festival Celebrates 10th Anniversary with Award-Winning Movies, Speakers, Receptions March 7 – 22,2020 Tickets are now on sale for the 10th Annual Carmel Jewish Film Festival (CJFF), featuring 10 films from six countries, noted speakers, and paneldiscussions. Carmel, CA, February 27, 2020 - Tickets are now on sale for the 10th Annual Carmel Jewish Film Festival (CJFF), featuring 10 films from six countries, noted speakers, and panel discussions. Film, program, venue information, dates, and times can be found on the CJFF website (www.carmeljff.org). Tickets will be available either through the website or by calling (800) 838-3006. Festival highlightsinclude: OPENING NIGHT (MARCH7) “Fiddler: Miracle ofMiracles” When "Fiddler on the Roof" opened on Broadway in 1964, it explored themes of tradition, religion, and anti-Semitism against a modern backdrop of radical social change that addressed gender roles, sexuality, and race. Rare archival footage and interviews with musical luminaries explore the legacy of this long- running, award-winning musical. Broadway actor Michael Bernardi will answer questions entertain following the film. Michael is the youngest actor to play Tevye on Broadway and is the son of actor Herschel Bernardi. Local favorites Reg Huston and Alisa Fineman will also make appearances. “VIOLINS OF HOPE” (MARCH8) Marking the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, the Violins of Hope will visit Northern California and make an appearance at the Carmel Jewish Film Festival. Some of these violins were played in concentration camps to entertain Nazis and lift the spirits of fellow prisoners; others were played in ghettos and labor camps to earn money for food. These instruments were restored in Israel and are a testament to the remarkable resilience of the human spirit. The CJFF is partnering with the Monterey County Symphony and Chamber Music Monterey for thisevent. Following a film about the Violins of Hope, renowned violinist Cookie Segelstein of Berkeley, CA, will play some the actual instruments, tell their stories, and talk about the cultural significance of music in Jewish communities in Eastern Europe. This program is part of Violins of Hope San Francisco Bay Area, presented in association with Music at Kohl Mansion, Burlingame, CA. A reception will precede the film. “BUDAPEST NOIR” (March14)

2. The CJFF will host a Q&A with award-winning filmmaker Éva Gardos following this thriller set in Budapest in the politically fraught autumn of 1936. The film follows a scrappy reporter as he probes the murder of a femme fatale, leading him into the dark crime underworld. Francis Ford Coppolagave Gardos, born in Hungary, her first job in film, working as a production assistant on Coppola’sepic “Apocalypse Now”. She went on to establish a career as a film editor (“Valley Girl”, “Mask”, “Bastard Out of Carolina”), working with distinguished directors such as Barbet Schroeder, Peter Bogdanovich, and AnjelicaHuston. Éva’s screenwriting and feature film directorial debut, the award-winning “An American Rhapsody”, starred a young Scarlett Johansson. The film is based on the true life events of Éva’s family escaping from Hungary in the 1950s. “THE ACCOUNTANT OF AUSCHWITZ” (March15) Partnering with the Catholic Diocese and the Unitarian Universalist Church Of Monterey, the CJFF will screen a Canadian film “The Accountant of Auschwitz”. In 2015, 94-year-old former German SS officer Oskar Groning admitted his guilt and went on trial. But bringing war criminals to justice asks fundamental moral questions with few simple answers. From Nuremberg to the new alt-right, this documentary is a stark reminder to “never forget”. A panel with Rabbi Jeff Schulman, Father Jerry Maher, and Reverend Elaine Gehrmann will follow thefilm. NIGHT OF SHORTS (March19) Tiffany Shlain, ,TED speaker, author and founder of the Webby Awards, Ken Goldberg, artist,inventor, and roboticist at UC Berkeley, and Michael Horwitz – all award-winning filmmakers will be participating in a Q & A following the screening of some of their films. Tiffany and Ken will be signing their book, 24/6: The Power of Unplugging Once aWeek. CLOSING NIGHT (MARCH22) The CJFF also will partner with the local Muslim community for the Closing Night selection Abe, a Brazilian film centered on a teen curious about his family’s Middle Eastern culinary heritage. Areception with Israeli and Arab dishes will precede the film. A talkback with Rabbi Bruce Greenbaum and Abdel Seck from the local Islamic community will follow thefilm. As the only Jewish film festival in Monterey County, we serve all residents with our efforts to promote understanding, respect, and cooperation through education using the medium of film. While informed by a uniquely Jewish sensibility, our films communicate themes and messages with universal appeal to a wide audience drawn from the Monterey Peninsula and beyond. Our festival’s accompanying programs further engage mind and heart through discussion and social interaction. We hope that our festival will help bridge cultural and religious differences and contribute to community solidarity andpeace. Additional information about all films and events, including ticket prices, can be found on the Carmel Jewish Film Festival website (www.carmeljff.org).

3. Contact: SusanGreenbaum 831-277-3211greenbaumcarmel@sbcglobal.net Contact: Marci BraccoCain Chatterbox PR Salinas, CA93901 (831)747-7455 http://www.carmeljff.org