30th Annual San Francisco Jewish Film Festival

The very first- and still largest- Jewish film festival in the world proudly celebrates its 30th Anniversary. The San Francisco Jewish Film Festival returns to the Rafael with exceptional classic and contemporary films from around the world. Join us for fascinating documentaries like A Small Act, A Film Unfinished and Jews and Baseball: An American Love Story, and see powerful features like The Wolberg Family, Ilusiones Opticas, Jaffa, Te Extraño (I Miss You) and Saviors in the Night. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll consider. And for certain, you'll talk about it.

Experience the passionate storytelling, moving images and courageous spirit of independent Jewish cinema in a vibrant contemporary celebration of a culture 5770 years in the making. The festival screens in theaters throughout the Bay Area July 24-August 9. Tickets, All-festival passes, discount 10-Flix Voucher Packs, and full schedule available now at www.sfjff.org or 866.558.4253.

Rafael passes or discounts are not valid for these screenings. Advance tickets are not available at the Rafael, and the Rafael will sell any remaining tickets on day of show only.

Bugsy
Saturday, August 7, 12:00pm
Warren Beatty's tour de force performance as sexy, psychotic gangster Bugsy Siegel shines among excellent turns by Annette Bening, Ben Kingsley and Harvey Keitel. Bugsy crackles with New York vernacular and the pop-pop of pistols. 136 min.

Mrs. Moscowitz and the Cats
Saturday, August 7, 2:45
Mrs. Moscowitz's lonely life is renewed after an accident places her in a geriatric ward in this graceful, superbly acted film (Best Actress, 2009 Jerusalem International Film Festival) exploring aging and its vulnerabilities. In Hebrew with English subtitles. 83 min.

A Film Unfinished
Saturday, August 7, 4:45
Filmmaker Yael Hersonski discovers that the Warsaw Ghetto footage that we've seen in countless documentaries was actually staged by the Nazis using the actual Jewish inhabitants of the Ghetto as "actors." In German, Hebrew, Polish, Yiddish with English subtitles. 89 min.

The Wolberg Family
preceded by Perfect Mother
Saturday, August 7, 6:45
Centered on the Jewish mayor of a town in French Basque country, the elegant directorial debut of French screenwriter Axelle Ropert presents winning characters and a thoughtful look at a family's and a town's coming-of-age. In French with English subtitles. Films 88 min.

Ilusiones Opticas
preceded by What About Me?
Saturday, August 7, 8:45
A blind skier, a voyeuristic security guard, a disgruntled healthcare worker and a flat-chested secretary make up the circle of oddball, yet endearingly ordinary characters in this melancholy comedy satirizing our obsession with appearances. In Spanish with English subtitles. Films 108 min.

A Small Act
Sunday, August 8, 12:00pm
As a poor Kenyan boy, Chris Mburu's life changed when a Jewish schoolteacher in Sweden anonymously sponsored his education. Now he wants to "pay it forward." In English, Gikuyu, Swahili, Swedish with English subtitles. 85 min.

Jews and Baseball: An American Love Story
Sunday, August 8, 2:00
Narrated by Dustin Hoffman, and more than a film about sports, this is a fascinating story of immigration, assimilation, bigotry and the shattering of stereotypes. 91 min.

Jaffa
Sunday, August 8, 4:15
A dinner table argument sets off a tragic chain of events at Reuven's family-run auto shop in the historic port town of Jaffa. Can Reuven's daughter, Mali, transcend the hatred that consumes her family? In Hebrew with English subtitles. 104 min.

Te Extraño (I Miss You)
preceded by The Orange
Sunday, August 8, 6:30
Argentinean director Fabian Hofman's semi-autobiographical account of a Jewish family caught up in the terror of the South American nation's mid-1970s Dirty War offers a bittersweet and suspenseful coming-of-age tale. In Hebrew with English subtitles. Films 107 min.

Bena
Sunday, August 8, 8:55
Bena, an undocumented Thai immigrant, is caught in a disturbing love triangle with Amos, a lonely widower, and Yurik, his schizophrenic teenage son. Will she risk Israeli imprisonment to escape their emotional trap? In English, Hebrew with English subtitles. 86 min.

Saviors in the Night
Monday, August 9, 6:15
A farmer exposes his own family to risk by sheltering the wife and daughter of a German-Jewish friend during the Nazi regime. This drama relates the extraordinary true story of their years together. In German with English subtitles. 100 min.

Arab Labor: Season 2
Monday, August 9, 8:30
Meet the Alians, an average Arab Israeli family. Their daily trials and tribulations are fuel for political parody in season two of this wickedly funny and unabashedly provocative Israeli sitcom. Written by SFJFF Freedom of Expression Award winner Sayed Kashua. In Arabic, Hebrew with English subtitles. 70 min.