Since its founding in 1992 as a unique partnership between the Jewish Museum and the Film Society of Lincoln Center, The New York Jewish Film Festival (NYJFF) has grown into one of the most significant Jewish film festivals in the world. Since its inception, the NYJFF has presented more than 700 films from 43 countries, of which 320 were U.S. or New York premieres. More than 11,000 people come to the Walter Reade Theater each January to enjoy features, documentaries, and shorts by renowned and emerging filmmakers alike, with many filmmakers in attendance to introduce their work and participate in post-screening Q&As. Special sidebar selections by influential filmmakers, archival prints, and rarely seen films from the vaults of Jewish cinematic history root this forward thinking festival in the past, and an array of public and educational programs create space for a richer conversation about the art of film, expanding the festival experience.

These salient facts reveal a broader truth about the intent and effect of the festival: in its inclusive reach, diversity of content, and depth of exploration, it both provides a platform for and helps to define the Jewish contribution to world cinema. This contribution is an evolving conversation about what it means to be Jewish at this moment in time, about our past, and about what our collective future holds. The festival is a framework for addressing these questions through art.

THE OFFICE Founding Director Rachel Chanoff is Chair of the Selection Committee for the NYJFF.

NYJFF website

 [Banner image: still from Cordelia Dvorak’s Marceline. A Woman. A Century]