AJFF In Conversation: The Podcast
by Atlanta Jewish Film Festival
In this podcast series, the voices of the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival engage listeners in an entertaining and illuminating discussion with some of the most fascinating Jewish artists, filmmakers, and writers working in or around cinema. Hosted by AJFF staff, each episode will feature a special guest, and showcase exemplary films, from past AJFF favorites, to hidden gems, new releases and classics.
Episodes
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Not to Be Missed: AJFF 2022
The 2022 Annual Festival is finally here, and with 50+ films from 18 countries, it may well be our best lineup ever. But the road to this year's festival was twisting, with lots of sharp turns and obstacles, and ultimately involved a pivot from a hybrid festival to a virtual exclusive experience....
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What to Watch July 2021
July may be coming to a close, but chances are, you are still catching up on all the Jewish content that came out this month on physical media and streaming platforms, because there was a lot. With that, Sara and Brad are back to chat about what to watch as of this month, from buzzworthy reality...
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Nora Ephron Appreciation Society
Nora Ephron was a trailblazing female filmmaker, especially when it came to romantic comedies, with directorial efforts like Sleepless in Seattle and You've Got Mail. Even more prolific as a screenwriter, she penned those two films plus a dozen others, including the iconic When Harry Met Sally…
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AJFF Selects: The Red Orchestra Q&A
Enjoy this exclusive Q&A with filmmaker Carl-Ludwig Rettinger, moderated by Holocaust historian Dr. Deborah Lipstadt. Rettinger's docudrama film "The Red Orchestra" chronicles a network of activist spies within the Third Reich. Carefully excerpted film clips of the early 1970s, interspersed with...
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Welcome Back, Playback!
We talked about AJFF's upcoming programs, including Playback, last episode. But we want to talk more about Playback, especially since it's back in just a couple weeks. Launched last year as part of our 20th anniversary, this online competition invites you to rediscover films from the festival…
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AJFF Summer 2021 Preview
Heading into the depths of summer there's a lot going on at AJFF. From Selects to Connects to Playback, we have a World War II spy doc, a gripping portrait of gay adoption, and seven weeks of films matching up to win your vote. Sara and Brad will help you navigate it all, so you don't miss a…
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In Search of the Jewish Blockbuster
Summer movie season is officially here, with big studio tentpoles finally hitting theaters – and many moviegoers finally willing to enter the hallowed ground of their local cineplex. Action franchises and family-friendly adventures do not typically boast Jewish themes, of course, which made us...
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Q&As at AJFF: SUBLET
A Q&A Panel from the 2021 Atlanta Jewish Film Festival for the film, Sublet. In this warmly affecting cross-generational melodrama, a middle-aged gay American writer numbed by tragedy finds solace in the company of a younger Israeli man. Sublet will be released in theaters in the U.S. on June 11...
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What to Watch in June 2021
It's the beginning of another month, so it's time to figure out what to stream (or venture to theaters for) over the next few weeks. The theme for June? A month for reconnecting with classics, from 1980's Best Picture to a modern remake of a Mel Brooks classic, with plenty of quintessentially...
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AJFF Selects: Stand! Exclusive Q&A Panel
AJFF's Selects series is more of what you love about the annual festival, and this past month, with our first Selects program of the season, our audience got to see Stand! in our Virtual Cinema: a stirring cross-cultural musical, in which a young immigrant couple finds romance on the streets of...
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Film 101: Extra Credit
It's pop quiz time, with film terms and definitions. Listeners who tuned in to last week's episode about what makes a film good – and who gets to determine that, anyway – got a mini crash course in film fundamentals. But with so many key questions to cover around classics, cult hits, quality and...
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Film 101: Appreciating the Cinema Arts
Discriminating audiences know a great work of cinema when they see it. And festivalgoers have high expectations for the quality of film we present annually at AJFF and year-round programs. But what are the ingredients and traits that make for exceptional filmmaking? For audiences seeking to...
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Road to the Oscars: From AJFF to the Big Night
The pinnacle of the awards season has now come to a close, with the 93rd Academy Awards. Like every film industry event and awards show during the pandemic, this year's Oscar telecast had its own unique spin on reinventing a traditional format for COVID times. It's been a particularly exciting…
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ATLFF Preview & Film Festivals in COVID Times
As the pandemic continues to reshape the ways we experience arts and entertainment, the worldwide circuit of film festivals is among those reimaging how to connect with and best serve audiences under highly unique circumstances. Even as vaccinations increase and cinemas slowly reopen, film…
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What to Watch in April 2021
Welcome back to a new season of AJFF In Conversation: The Jewish Film Podcast. Hosts Sara and Brad are back from the 2021 Atlanta Jewish Film Festival and brief post-festival hiatus feeling rested and ready to bring you more interviews, deep-dive discussions, and much more, beginning this week…
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All About the AJFF Jury
Each year, the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival bestows special recognition to outstanding films and filmmakers participating in its annual international celebration of the cinema arts. In Competition titles vie for honors across six Jury Prize categories, including Best Narrative, Documentary, and...
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Q&As at AJFF: Kiss Me Kosher
One of the biggest silver linings of a hybrid edition of the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival is the ability to bring film talent together from all around the world in an even more robust way than in a typical year. There is perhaps no better example of that than our opening night. We kicked off the...
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AJFF at the Drive-In
Though audiences will experience most of this year's Atlanta Jewish Film Festival in the Virtual Cinema, organizers were also committed to finding fun and innovative ways to safely bring the community together. Thus, plans for a night at the drive-in were born! Three nights, actually. Thanks to…
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Professors' Picks 2021
We're counting down to the start of this year's Atlanta Jewish Film Festival, and here to help you get ready for our hybrid 21st edition. By now, you may have perused the film lineup in the AJFF program guide or website. With such a diverse array of international and independent movies to pick...
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A Chat With AJFF Leadership
Our hybrid 21st edition of the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival is nearly here! The movie lineup has been unveiled online, program guides are arriving in mailboxes…and now, it's time for you to get ready to fest! With so much to explore and anticipate, there is no better way to usher in the annual...
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Get Ready to Fest!
The 21st edition of the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival is right around the corner. It's going to be a film festival unlike any other. As anticipation builds, so do the burning questions. How will this year's film festival be different, and what do I need to do to get ready? Get the inside scoop on...
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Film in Georgia: 2020 and a Look Forward
It may be some time before the full global economic toll of the COVID-19 pandemic is fully understood. Certainly among those hard hit sectors is the world of entertainment, including what has been a booming film industry in Georgia. As a proud champion of the film ecosystem of our city and state,...
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Festival of Lights on Film
Let's face it: if you're looking for a great Hanukkah movie to celebrate with this winter, you're likely to be left out in the cold. While Christmas movies are a genre of their own, it's hard to credibly name one Hollywood offering that could be called a Hanukkah classic. Could it be that the…
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What About Shorts?
For most audiences, a night out at the movies means a full course meal. But increasingly, tastes are growing for the diversionary delights and emotional payoffs that come with the oft overlooked short film format. The Atlanta Jewish Film Festival has long proudly given a platform to shorts, a...
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Be Our Guest
The best movies don't just entertain while engendering a visceral emotional response, but also serve as a spark for stimulating conversation. The Atlanta Jewish Film Festival seeks to foster and amplify those conversations, bringing together the community in dialogue around the film arts and the...
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Jewish Film & TV to be Thankful For
In a year that has been filled with unprecedented challenges, it's all the more important to find things to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. Fortunately, when it comes to the world of Jewish film and television, there's plenty to be grateful for. Join hosts Sara and Brad as they chat about just…
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AJFF Cinderella Stories with Menemsha
Over the past twenty years, the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival has showcased countless films from all around the world that have gone on to have incredible, impressive journeys -- from long and lucrative theatrical runs to Academy Awards recognition to continuing to build bridges of understanding...
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Aaron Wolf: One Filmmaker's Journey
A longtime friend of the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival, Aaron Wolf has an eclectic young Hollywood career both in front of and behind the camera. Based in Los Angeles, he wears many showbiz hats: narrative and documentary filmmaker, writer, actor and co-founder of a full-service production…
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Oy the Horror!
Halloween is here, a perfect time to spook ourselves with an immersion into the world of horror movies that tell uniquely Jewish stories. Israeli filmmakers have been among those most recently tackling the horror genre with such AJFF titles as the zombie flick JeruZalem, and a retelling of the...
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The Politics of Aaron Sorkin and the West Wing
Joining us for this edition of AJFF In Conversation: The Jewish Film Podcast, is very special guest Eli Attie, whose own time in politics and natural writing talent helped shape the much-beloved The West Wing, created by Aaron Sorkin. This fall, Sorkin is back with The Trial of the Chicago 7…
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Creating a Character: The Moni Yakim Legacy
What do Meryl Streep, Jessica Chastain, Adam Driver and Oscar Isaac all have in common? For over 50 years, Israeli-born Julliard drama teacher Moni Yakim has trained Hollywood's most celebrated actors. This affectionate portrait takes us inside America's greatest performing arts school, while...
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Profiles in Political Leadership
As we prepare to cast ballots in perhaps the most consequential election in U.S. history, what can cinematic profiles in leadership tell us about picking our future elected officials? From a big city mayor to British and Israeli Prime Ministers, political biographies are a hallmark of the Atlanta...
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Out on Film Sneak Peek
The fall festival season is already in full swing right here in Atlanta, including Out on Film, one of the oldest LGBTQ+ film festivals in the United States. In our latest podcast, we'll get a preview of the 33rd annual edition of Out on Film with festival director Jim Farmer and board chair…
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How to Build a Film Festival
The seasons are changing. And with the arrival of fall comes the most exciting and consequential time of year in the cinema industry: the major fall film festivals and the unofficial kickoff to awards season. For film critics, it's a paradise of prestige movie releases and buzzy speculation as to...
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Movies in Harmony: Black-Jewish Music on Screen
As AJFF continues to examine Black-Jewish relations through film stories, our latest podcast celebrates the creative intersection of these communities in the realm of American music. Collaborative yet sometimes complicated, the relationship between Black artists and Jewish producers in the middle...
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The "Greats" Debate
Every art form has its classics. Cinema is no different. But when it comes to classic Jewish film, does everyone agree on the presumed greats? As you might imagine, when it comes to movies (and especially Jewish movies), no two opinions are the same. For our latest podcast episode, hosts Sara and...
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Flawless with Stav Strashko, Netsanet Mekonen, and Noam Lugasy
An audience favorite of the 2020 AJFF, Flawless is the coming-of-age dramedy about a trio of teenage girls who seek to remake themselves before their high school prom. Watch the film online through a special offer for AJFF subscribers and then join us for a Q&A with lead actress Stav Strashko…
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More than Mrs. Maisel: The Best Jewish TV Shows
There's a new Golden Age of Television upon us, with the lines between the small screen and the big screen increasingly blurred. Today, some of the most compelling stories and characters, and top-notch talent, can be found on television. It's no wonder our quarantine entertainment includes both...
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Stan Lee and Beyond
We often don't think about the way Jewish culture and values have shaped comic book characters and the superhero stories we tend to see in our summer blockbusters, but they certainly have. This episode seeks to unpack the influence of Stan Lee's Jewish identity on some of our most cherished...
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Book to Screen
By now, listeners of AJFF In Conversation: The Podcast know that, while far from experts on everything, Sara and Brad love movies. But, what many may not know is, they also love books: books about Jewish film, Jewish books that should be films, and books about film by Jews. For this episode, Sara...
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Olympic Pride, American Prejudice with Deborah Riley Draper
In this episode of AJFF In Conversation: The Podcast, filmmaker Deborah Riley Draper joins hosts Sara and Brad for a candid, eye-opening conversation centered around her recent documentary Olympic Pride, American Prejudice, a look at the complex racial politics of the Nazi Games in 1936 Berlin as...
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Lights, Camera, Feminist Call-To-Action
AJFF has long shared strong female narratives through film. How do these stories intersect with Judaism and Jewish life? What are some memorable films that reveal the everyday realities of Jewish women around the world, and serve as a vehicle for understanding and action. Join hosts Sara and Brad...
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Revenge of the Jewish Cinema!
What exactly is the Jewish notion of vengeance, and how has the concept been handled across Jewish media? Has it been portrayed with nuance and complexity, or has it mostly been a means of on-screen violence and exploitation? Join Sara, Brad, and special guest Dr. Eyal Peretz, as they try to…
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Am I Allowed to Laugh at This? Bonus Conversation
Sometimes we think we're done talking but we're not really done talking. Enjoy these extra minutes of conversation with film scholar Eddy Von Mueller as we dig a little deeper on the subject of comedies about tragedy. This bonus episode was recorded after we thought the discussion from the…
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Am I Allowed to Laugh at This?
Cinema has offered numerous satirical takes on history's darkest chapter, often controversial and sometimes considered in questionable taste. Film scholar Eddy Von Mueller joins AJFF In Conversation podcast hosts Sara and Brad as they grapple with the taboo topic of Holocaust humor, discussing...
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Resistance featuring Jesse Eisenberg and Jonathan Jakubowicz
Actor Jesse Eisenberg and writer/director Jonathan Jakubowicz joined AJFF online in April to discuss their new biographical drama Resistance with historian Catherine Lewis. Please enjoy the audio of this webinar as Eisenberg and Jakubowicz go behind the scenes of the film, which is based on the...
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Matzo at the Movies
What is the relationship between food and the Jewish experience, and how has that relationship been cooked up on the movie screen? What are the quintessential Jewish foods, their role in cinematic stories, and most memorably delicious onscreen representations? Join hosts Sara and Brad, and…
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Movies to Self Isolate By (Part 2)
We're back with part 2 of our conversation about recommended movies to watch while cooped up flattening the curve. Dr. Matthew Bernstein of Emory University returns to join our hosts Sara and Brad, and you, for a deep dive into some uplifting, inspiring, and maybe even somewhat challenging Jewish...
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Movies to Self Isolate By (Part 1)
So, you've finished watching all of Netflix (or so it seems). What are the best Jewish movies that can help pass the time while practicing social distancing? Join hosts Sara and Brad, and special guest Dr. Matthew Bernstein of Emory University, for this first-ever edition of AJFF In Conversation:...
About this show
In this podcast series, the voices of the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival engage listeners in an entertaining and illuminating discussion with some of the most fascinating Jewish artists, filmmakers, and writers working in or around cinema. Hosted by AJFF staff, each episode will feature a special guest, and showcase exemplary films, from past AJFF favorites, to hidden gems, new releases and classics.
Hosted by
Atlanta Jewish Film Festival