Theatre, Film & Broadcast

Voting by proxy in Congress during pandemic?

Congresswoman Susan Davis (D-San Diego) says she is in a favor of  a proposal that would permit voting by proxy in Congress as long as the requirement of social distancing is in effect or if similar emergencies should occur. [Our Shtetl San Diego County column by Donald H. Harrison]

Voting by proxy in Congress during pandemic? Read More »

Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, Middle East, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, USA

‘Children of Windermere’ a riveting dramatization

The BBC film Children of Wandermere is a heart- rending and at the same time heart-warming film of the incredible rescue mission of 300 children from ages 3 to 16 who survived the death camps of Germany in 1945. The first group of youngsters was flown for eight hours seated on the floor of a converted RAF bomber. They only had the clothes on their backs and some meager possessions. Until the Red Cross provided clothes, all the children went around in their underwear. [Cantor Sheldon Foster Merel]

‘Children of Windermere’ a riveting dramatization Read More »

Cantor Sheldon Foster Merel, z"l, International, Jewish History, Theatre, Film & Broadcast

Movie probes Israelis who move to Germany, Austria

Back to the Fatherland is a documentary that raises more questions than it provides answers, but in so doing it portrays the anguish that Israeli Jews and Gentiles from Germany and Austria still feel about the Holocaust.  With occasional passages involving filmmakers Kat Rohrer and Gil Levanon themselves — one being Austrian, the other Israeli — the film for the most part focuses on ttwo young Israeli men who decided to make their homes in Austria and Germany, and the reaction and memories their decisions stir up within their grandparents, who were Holocaust survivors. [Movie review by Donald H. Harrison]

Movie probes Israelis who move to Germany, Austria Read More »

Donald H. Harrison, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, Videos

Streaming films about the Haredim

For a long time most films dealing with Orthodox and Ultra-Orthodox Jews sided with individuals whose choice of lifestyle, partners, or vocations conflicted with the expectations of their families and community.  While that is still true of many movies, in recent years films with sympathetic portrayals of traditional Jewish subcultures have emerged.  Here’s a sampling of both kinds of cinematic depictions. [Laurie Baron, PhD]

Streaming films about the Haredim Read More »

Jewish Religion, Lawrence Baron, Theatre, Film & Broadcast

‘Plum Rains’ peeks into potential future

Plum Rains by Andromeda Romano-Lax is a novel set in the immediate future: 2029.  As such many common and universal human failings are on full display.  Greed, disdain, and full blown discrimination against people who are “others,” those who are not exactly like us, or who are like us, but from a slightly different location.  All of these human failings are all on full display throughout the novel. [Pamela Pollack Fremd]

‘Plum Rains’ peeks into potential future Read More »

Theatre, Film & Broadcast, Travel and Food

Jewish community raises $2 million for Covid-19 emergencies; more needed

Approximately $2 million has been raised for the San Diego Jewish Community Emergency Fund, created by the Jewish Community Foundation, the Leichtag Foundation, and the Jewish Federation of San Diego County, professionals of those three organizations noted Monday in a Zoom conference. However, more will be needed, according to Beth Sirull, the president and CEO of the Jewish Community Foundation. “The pandemic has the makings of a real humanitarian nightmare,” she said, noting that as people are thrown out of work, they are struggling to meet such basic needs as purchasing foods and medicines. [Our Shtetl San Diego County column by Donald H. Harrison]

Jewish community raises $2 million for Covid-19 emergencies; more needed Read More »

Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, Judaism, Lifestyles, Obituaries & memorials, San Diego County, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, USA

The pioneering American Jewish women directors

I should have compiled this list during March for Women’s History Month, but better late than never. I’ve been doing research for the past 2 years on American Jewish women directors and wanted to share some of the films by the pioneers that you can stream at home.  Although a considerable number of women directed films during the silent era, those numbers dwindled to two, Dorothy Arzner and Ida Lupino, between 1930 and 1960.  The decline of the studio system and the political and social movements of the 60s opened up opportunities for more women directors in the next decade.  Jewish women were disproportionately represented in their ranks. [Laurie Baron, Ph.D]

The pioneering American Jewish women directors Read More »

Jewish History, Lawrence Baron, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, USA

Making theatre under quarantine

Because of the rules of Social Distancing, our theatres are closed. SD REP’s House of Joy closed the same weekend it opened. Roustabouts’ gUnTOPIA showed one preview and has been rolled over into next season. Other shows have been indefinitely postponed or simply cancelled. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that theatre isn’t happening. We live in the Digital Age of YouTube, Skype and Zoom. And so “the show must go online.” Here are some of the ways our local theatres are still offering performances to our community. [Eric George Tauber]

Making theatre under quarantine Read More »

Eric George Tauber, San Diego County, Theatre, Film & Broadcast