THE JERUSALEM CINEMATHEQUE
The Jerusalem Cinematheque Located in a beautiful century-old stone complex facing the walls of the Old City in the heart of the Wolfson Gardens, the Jerusalem Cinematheque (also known as the Jerusalem Film Center) is a key fixture on the capital s cultural scene, providing entertainment, educational activities and a unique meeting place for the capital s mosaic of ethnic and religious communities. The Jerusalem Cinematheque has become distinctive worldwide for its focus on cinema as a catalyst for cross-cultural understanding. Under the leadership of founding director Lia van Leer, and with continuing principal support from the Ostrovsky Family Fund, the van Leer Group Foundation and the Jerusalem Foundation, the organization has expanded to a significant cultural center which serves almost a million visitors annually. The Cinematheque actively promotes programs that further dialogue, understanding and tolerance. Therefore, in addition to six or so daily film screenings, the Cinematheque offers a range of film-related courses, seminars and workshops, screening series, premieres and school-oriented educational programs. Most Cinematheque programs are open to the general public. The Cinematheque also hosts films festivals, including the Jerusalem International Film Festival in July and the Jewish Film Festival in December. 2007 Festivals and Special Screenings January British Film Festival Ten days of contemporary British cinema. Guests of Honor: Sean Ellis, Jes Benstock, Rex Bloomstein, Simon Rumley - 3,500 participants 2
The Adventures of Antoine Duvalle Otto Preminger s book launch. The book deals with François Truffaut; therefore, a series of his films on Antoine Duvalle was screened. - 500 participants February In honor of the International Book Fair that took place this year at the Jerusalem Convention Center Biyanei HaOoma. The Jerusalem Cinematheque offices and archives were relocated to the Jerusalem Convention Center during the renovations that took place between July 2006 and July 2007, thus the Cinematheque continued to function normally. Therefore, the Jerusalem Cinematheque screened films based on books written by the Jerusalem Prize laureates e.g., Jorge Luis Borges The Spider s Stratagem, Max Frisch s Homo faber, Graham Green s The Quiet American, etc. - 500 participants March To celebrate the International Women s Day, the Cinematheque held a series of special events: Women and Religion Festival in cooperation with Mavoi Satum, a nonprofit organization that assists Agunot (women bound in marriage by a husband who refuses to grant a divorce or who is missing and not proved dead) and Mesuravot Get (wives who have been refused a divorce). During three days, films dealing with these issues were screened followed by discussions in participation of the films creators (most of whom were women). - 1,500 participants Korean Film Festival Seven new Korean films were screened. May French Film Festival 15 new French films were screened in the presence of guests of honors from the French cinema world. - 3,000 participants June Australian Film Festival 15 new Australian films were screened. - 1,000 participants August Retrospective to Peter Whitehead, British documentary films director and novelist - 500 participants Brazilian Film Festival - 15 new Brazilian films were screened. - 1,000 participants Indian Film Festival Ten new Indian films were screened and visit of Retorno Gosh, Indian director - 1,000 participants Screening of films nominated for Ophir Prize for Best Picture (the Israeli Oscar) 3
September Tribute to the late French director Jacques Demy and screening of five of his films. Tribute to the late Ingmar Bergman and screening of 25 of his films. Tribute to the late Michelangelo Antonioni and screening of three of his films. October Retrospective of David Lynch films in honor of his visit to Israel - 2,500 participants November The East German Cinema comprehensive program about films made in East Germany. 15 filmed were screened within the framework of the program. - 2,000 participants December The Jewish Film Festival - during the days of the Festival, over 50 films, from Israel and from all over the world, are screened feature films, documentaries, shorts, animated and avant-garde films that explore themes of Jewish faith and practice, history, culture, music, contemporary life in Israel and the Jewish Diaspora, the relationship between Judaism and other world religions and the role of Jewish identity in the State of Israel. Guests of honor: Paul Mazursky, Eli Shuraki, etc. The Russian Film Festival screening of 12 films that have been made in Russia during the last two years but did not reach the Russian wide public. - 1,200 participants Pandora s Box The Jewish image in the Polish documentary films since the Fall of the Berlin Wall. Documentary films on Jewish themes made after 1989 were screened. - 800 participants 4
Educational Activities Education activities are scheduled over 300 days a year. Courses include film screenings and discussions on various topics led by scholars, filmmakers, staff and experts, and focus on cinema history as well as on current events, topical issues and specialist subjects. Many offerings correspond to national curricula for elementary and high schools, and are accredited for in-service training requirements for teachers and social workers. The Cinematheque s Educational Department also holds workshops for special-needs adults and children. Since 1999, a month-long internationally recognized initiative: I AM YOU ARE, has been helping Jewish and Arab teens create a short film about their experiences, dreams and fears. The workshop has introduced participants to scriptwriting, technical skills, and cinematography, as well as to conflict resolution tools. The productions are regularly invited for special screenings at international forums and film festivals, and this year saw the development of the first I AM YOU ARE alumni program. Activities in Cooperation with the State Educational System These activities are designed in conjunction with the Jerusalem municipality and are aimed at elementary and high school students. The curriculum offers a wide range of film-related subjects, on themes as diverse as science fiction, film and politics, pluralism, globalization, coming of age, comedy, history and film, etc. Over 100 workshop days for Jerusalem elementary schools, reach 12,500 children, and over 250 workshop days for high school students reach 35,000 students. The curriculum is developed in dialogue with teachers and takes into account subjects on the Ministry of Education school curriculum, as well as those applicable to a wider school syllabus. Some schools develop a year-long program; others opt for shorter projects. Lectures and films are geared to age, school and particular need. Schools in east Jerusalem also participate and programs for these students are held in Arabic. Regular on and off-site programs for 5
Israeli Arab school children focusing on the history of cinema, filmmaking skills and tolerance themes. The department also initiates special projects, such as the film competition for high school students that opens the International Film Festival every year, and two marathon screenings held for high schools throughout the year. Adult Education Courses Every year more than ten courses are held in the afternoon and evening for adults on film-related subjects (e.g., history of cinema, film genres, philosophy and film, psychology and film etc). The Cinematheque offers 12 adult education courses for Arabic speakers. The Cinematheque also organizes courses for a specific public. This year courses were held specifically for teachers, social workers and human rights organizations. These are tailor made to the needs of the group according to their special requests. Special Needs Program The Cinematheque runs courses and workshops for special needs children in the mornings and a year- long course for special needs adults. In addition, the Cinematheque offers special screenings and performances for the physically and mentally challenged. The Israel Film Archive is the largest film research resource in the Middle East. With more than 20,000 films, 14,000 videotapes and thousands of film negatives, the Archive contains the world s largest library of Jewish and Israeli cinema. The archive preserves a copy and negative of every Israeli feature film, from the first motion picture footage of the Holy Land, to a collection of Israeli newsreels dating from 1927 to 1958. It makes every effort to acquire through purchase, deposit and barter film productions and material pertaining to Jewish themes and history, and in particular the Holocaust of European Jewry. 6
Conclusion A non-profit institution dedicated to promoting the art of cinema, the Cinematheque has developed an outstanding reputation at home and abroad. The impact of this film center extends beyond the realm of cinema as entertainment. The center is an integral part of Jerusalem s cultural life as well as an important educational forum, serving film-lovers, historians, scholars and students of cinema as well as members of the public from all over Israel and throughout the world. Cinema is one of the most powerful influences of modern society. Therefore, in addition to regularly scheduled screenings, symposia and workshops, the Cinematheque also showcases films which would otherwise never have reached Jerusalem. Thus, the Jerusalem Cinematheque continues to attract visitors of all ages and interests from across Jerusalem and Israel. 7
Building Progress Report at the New Wing of the Jerusalem Cinematheque July 2008 The project is complete, all bureaucratic measures have been approved, and the Cinematheque is now back up and running to its full capacity with the inclusion of the new Meyerhoff Family Auditorium and the Kleidman Hall. On July 10 th, the Jerusalem Foundation together with its leading donors held two festive dedication ceremonies at the newly renovated Jerusalem Cinematheque. The Kleidman Hall was named after Jane Breteau in honor of Reine Kleidman's mother. Ilan De Vries, Reine Kleidman and Danny Mimran Reine Kleidman, Lia Van Leer and Ruth Cheshin 8
The Joseph and Harvey Myerhoff Family Auditorium Terry Rubinstein and Ruth Cheshin Rare footage from the archives at the Cinematheque was shown in each auditorium to commemorate the event. The new spaces will facilitate expanded educational programming. The building of the new wing is complete interior construction on the archive, office, lobby, lecture gallery and multimedia center are pending fundraising targets for 2008/9. Later in the day, the Jerusalem Cinematheque opened it's doors to the 25 th International Film Festival. 9