The Jewish Film Festival Berlin | Brandenburg (JFBB) is the largest Jewish film festival in Germany. For six days, international films of all genres are shown, from arthouse films to blockbusters, from historical observations to family comedies. The festival highlights Jewish history, present and future. In addition, the festival has the mission to keep the memory of the Shoah alive, to convey historical awareness and to counteract anti-Semitic attitude patterns. The JFBB shows about 50 films in two competitions for feature and documentary films, thematic special sections and a tribute. It takes place annually in mid-June in Berlin, Potsdam and other locations in the state of Brandenburg .
Dive into a festival week full of extraordinary films and talks, exhibitions, readings and concerts - from June 13 to 18, 2023.
Jewcy Movies - The Jewish Film Festival Berlin and Brandenburg is thoughtful and humorous, between individual life story, political essay and discussion-oriented documentary.
The movies
The research and selection of films in our program is carried out by a five-member program collective, which is supported selectively by researchers and curators.
Current international feature films and documentaries are shown in two competitions. The films compete for the coveted Gershon-Klein awards. In Kino Fermished, there is the broad film selection, across all genres and Nosh Nosh (Yiddish for "treats") shows selected short films. All of the festival's competitions and prizes can be found here.
Complementing the program this year are four special series:
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the Jewcy Horror Movies show how Jewish narratives enrich the diversity of this genre
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a tribute to Shoa survivor Jack Garfein, who made a career in Hollywood as a film and theater director and later co-founder of "Method Acting" and was, among other things, James Dean's teacher
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the Canadian-Jewish satirical duo Yidlife Crisis will not only curate a series of Canadian films for us, which they will present in person, but will also be guests at the Jewish Museum Berlin with their program during the JFBB
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The State of Israel celebrates its 75th birthday this year. We congratulate and present contributions from this exciting and vital film and series nation, which are as diverse and critical as the entire JFBB program
Film Education
We see educational work with children, teenagers and young adults as one of our central tasks. Read more about our film education programs for school classes here and about the open "Summerschool Jüdischer Film" for students from all over Germanyhere.
Background of the Jewish Film Festival Berlin and Brandenburg
The Jewish Film Festival Berlin and Brandenburg was founded in 1995 by Nicola Galliner, at that time as part of the cultural work of the Jewish Community Berlin, and was successfully managed for many years. In the meantime, the JFBB has developed into the largest German festival with films on Jewish themes and from Israel. Since the beginning of 2021, the JFBB has been in the hands of Doreen Goethe and Andreas Stein, who enjoy an excellent reputation in the industry as organizers of one of the world's leading festivals of Eastern European film, the FilmFestival Cottbus.
Organizing a Jewish film festival in Berlin and Brandenburg, the region where the Shoa was planned and organized, was and is associated with a special responsibility, which we as the entire JFBB team try to live up to.
But what actually makes a film a Jewish film?
This topic has also moved the Jewish Film Festival Berlin and Brandenburg since its founding. Publicist Henryk M. Broder answered it in his usual pointed way in the commemorative publication for the tenth anniversary of the Jewish Film Festival Berlin:
"Everything that is not boring is Jewish. Because, contrary to all prejudices, there is only one area in which Jews do indeed dominate. It is not banking, not the stock market, not the game of billiards. It is entertainment, show business. ... So what makes a Jewish film? The same thing that makes a Jewish book or Jewish music. It doesn't bore. No sooner has it begun than it's over. There are 60, 120 or 180 minutes between the beginning and the end, but it's only the perceived time that matters. If it's more than ten minutes, then it's not a Jewish film."