Gold Coast International Film Festival is proud to present the best in critically acclaimed and independent Jewish films. The GCIFF lineup showcases 5 exciting features and special guest speakers. All films will be shown in-person at the Manhasset Cinemas.

Schedule:

Tuesday, March 14, 2023

7:00pm: Schächten – A Retribution

The young Jewish Austrian businessman Victor is a witness to how the prosecution of a Nazi crime perpetrated against his family unjustly fails in the courtroom. The political and legal system in 1960's Austria is still run by former Nazis and there is no avenue for Victor to change matters.. When Victor also loses his grief stricken father and his girlfriend's family opposes their relationship and his being Jewish, Victor completely loses faith in the system and pursues matters via a different path.

A dynamic, lavishly mounted historical drama about the scars of war and the long road to revenge that reminds us, says filmmaker Thomas Roth, of "how quickly the cycle of hatred can re-emerge in all of us."

Tomas Roth | 2022 | Drama | Austria | German with English Subtitles | 110 minutes

Thursday, March 16, 2023

7:00pm: Israel Swings for Gold  

Continuing the underdog sports saga, in 2021, Israel’s baseball team competed in the Olympics for the first time. With no media allowed in Tokyo’s Olympic Village, the players instead recorded their own experiences. Mostly newly minted Israelis, they log unexpected battles against anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism. Comprised of Jews from all over, including Americans, Team Israel's shared sense of identity unifies the blue-and-white squad.

This crowd-pleasing sequel to the 2017 hit Heading Home: The Tale of Team Israel will inspire pride and cheers from baseball lovers and non-fans alike.

Daniel Miller, Jeremy Newberger, Seth Kramer | 2023 | Documentary | USA | 75 Minutes

Presented with generous support from Micki & Dohn S. Schildkraut.

Tuesday, March 21, 2023

7:00pm: Hummus full trailer

It is a comedy of errors that involves three dubious trailers that arrive into Israel. The trailers are imported by a couple of Arabs, gay Florists and Religious Jews. Due to an error in the harbor, they all receive the wrong shipment. Into this mix, Johny, a young groom is thrown in by his mobster father, who is in the midst of a gangster war with their family's nemesis and needs one of the trailers. Johny now needs to fix the mess in order to get married on time.

Asaf Kobrovsky | 2022 | Comedy, Crime | Israel | Hebrew with English Subtitles | 90 Minutes

Thursday, March 23, 2023

7:00pm: Exodus 91

A hybrid docudrama film that follows Israeli diplomat, Asher Naim, on a semmingly insurmountable mission to bring 15,000 Ethiopian Jews to Israel. As Asher learns more about these African Jews, he finds himself between worlds and facing a crisis of faith in himself and his country.

In his vital, gripping film, director Micah Smith brings a historical moment to vivid life through a hybrid of documentary and dramatic narrative. Smith returns to the politically complex May 1991 event known as Operation Solomon. Israeli diplomat Asher Naim travels to Ethiopia to act as negotiator for the release of 15,000 Ethiopian Jews, hoping to save them from a country plagued by famine and civil war. This seemingly altruistic mission, however, is thrown into doubt and skepticism when Naim begins to suspect the rescue mission might be a publicity stunt for his home country, and the Ethiopians wonder whether they have been little more than pawns. At the same time that the escalating situation on the ground becomes combustible, Naim’s crisis of faith grows.

+ Special Guest Speaker Mazi Melesa Pilip, Nassau County Legislator - District 10

Micah Smith | 2022 | Docudrama | Israel | English, Hebrew with English Subtitles | 90 Minutes

Presented with generous support from Sumi & Michael Glickman.

Tuesday, March 28, 2023

7:00pm: America

After the success of The Cakemaker, writer/director Ofir Raul Graizer returns with an affectionate tribute to 60s and 70s cinema in a film full of emotion, color and fragrance that pays homage to friendship, love and moral responsibility.Having reinvented himself in the United States, swimming coach Eli reluctantly returns to Israel following his estranged father’s death. His decision to reconnect with a childhood friend and his fiancée sets in motion a chain of events and a tragedy that will change their lives forever.

As beautiful, delicate and colorful as the various flowers that often fill the screen, America is a remarkable and heartrending exploration of human emotions and relationships.

Winner: Jerusalem Film Festival (Best Actress)

Ofir Raul Graizer | 2022 | Drama | Israel, Germany, Czech Republic | Hebrew with English Subtitles | 127 Minutes

Date: Tuesday, March 14, 2023 - Tuesday, March 28, 2023

Location: Manhasset Cinemas - 430 Plandome Rd, Manhasset, NY 11030

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