October 11, 2024

A year after the Hamas attacks of Oct. 7, with rising antisemitism in America, many Jews are wondering what the future has in store.

Jewish Story Partners is a Los Angeles-based non-profit founded in April 2021, in response to a lack of funding for Jewish independent films. As age-old antisemitic conspiracy theories proliferate across 21st century platforms, its mission to support films that tell complex and diverse Jewish stories seems more urgent than ever, said executive director and co-founder Roberta Grossman and Caroline Libresco, co-founder and head of granting and programs.

“Film is the very best way to educate; as Roger Ebert said ‘film is an empathy machine’” Grossman said. “I feel that there’s a lot of scrambling in the Jewish world to figure out how to address the rise in antisemitism … Film is one of the very best tools. We can tell lots of stories that reach people and that speak beyond the core audience that educate within and without the Jewish community. I’m all in for the importance of film. Film is a great way for Jews to be part of the democratic conversation. There’s so much in flux. I personally find that the world is upside down right now. So, it’s great to have filmmakers to provide points of view that might be challenging, comforting, realigning, expanding.”

Grossman has won numerous awards for films she has directed, including “Above and Beyond” and 2018’s “Who Will Write Our History” which chronicled Emanuel Ringelblum’s archive of the horrors of the Warsaw Ghetto and his effort to make sure documents survived.

Jewish Story Partners, using funding from Kate Capshaw’s and Steven Spielberg’s Righteous Persons Foundation and other Jewish philanthropies, has given filmmakers more than $3 million dollars spread across more than 100 films. Some stellar releases include Ondi Timoner’s “Last Flight Home” (MTV Documentary Films) about the final days in the life of her father, and “Four Winters: A Story of Jewish Partisan Resistance and Bravery in World War II” directed by Julia Mintz, which showed how more than 25,000 Jews fought in the forests during World War II. There was also “Fiddler’s Journey to The Big Screen” directed by Daniel Raim.

There has been a “tsunami of applications” according to Grossman, who said they’ve reviewed more than 900 submissions. Libresco said that while many Jewish stories in the media focus on stereotypes of Jewish life, there is a world out there of “more complex multiracial, multicultural stories reflecting the full range of Jewish experience.”

Jewish Story Partners has been assisting several Oct. 7 based films.

“(They) are not these omnibus histories of the conflict, they’re stories of individuals,” Grossman said. “They are intimate stories that open the window to a larger journey.

Nancy Spielberg Says The Time Is Now

One of the Oct. 7 films that is in the works is about David Cunio, who was abducted by Hamas from Kibbutz Nir Oz. Jewish Story Partners board member and film producer Nancy Spielberg said she was in Israel on Oct. 7 and has seen virtually every video available of the attack. She said Cunio’s wife and daughters, who were taken hostage with him, were released in November and Cunio is believed to be alive. The film is directed by Tom Shoval.

Speaking with The Journal shortly after the announcement of the murder of Hersh Goldberg-Polin and five other hostages, Spielberg said it has been emotionally difficult.

“I had prayers for an Entebbe,” she said, referencing the dramatic July 1976 rescue by Israeli soldiers of 100 hostages on the Air France Flight 139 hijacked while traveling from Tel Aviv to Paris. In that storied success, which became the basis of multiple movies, intelligence showed the hostages were in an old airport terminal, whereas it is unclear where in Gaza the hostages currently are, though a handful were rescued, including Noa Argamani.

Spielberg said that while they could not predict something like Oct.7, it was clear there was an urgent need to tell authentic Jewish stories, when haters of Jews spread negative stereotypes and blood libels.

“Antisemitism was already off the charts in 2021,” Spielberg said.  “We wanted to fill a need that was out there to tell different types of stories … I love the story of Sephardic Jews living in Arab countries and films that explore different aspects of Jewish identity, and there are many.”

“We wanted to fill a need that was out there to tell different types of stories … I love the story of Sephardic Jews living in Arab countries and films that explore different aspects of Jewish identity, and there are many.” – Nancy Spielberg

Upcoming releases include an untitled documentary about Adolf Hitler directed by Dror Moreh and “The Consequences of Truth” directed by Denis Dobrovoda, which tells the story of Alfred Wetzler, who escaped from Auschwitz and warned of the atrocities taking place.

Grossman said that Jewish Story Partners has a system of selecting worthy films so that those funding can know that it is going to a good source.

“There are funders who are very attuned and committed to funding film, but not necessarily Jewish film, and most Jewish funders have historically not been comfortable funding Jewish films,” Grossman said. “So, there’s just a gap and a lot of great stories waiting to be told are falling through the cracks because of that gap in funding.”

She added that there are filmmakers “at the top of their game” who may decide to make a Jewish centered film.

The Creator of ‘Friends’ Believes Documentaries Are Vital 

Marta Kauffman co-created the hit NBC show “Friends” with David Crane. The Emmy-winning writer, producer and showrunner said many things in entertainment are unpredictable.

“We didn’t know it was going to be a hit at the beginning,” Kauffman said, adding that the cast included Jewish characters, including Jewish actors David Scwimmer’s Ross and Courtney Cox’s Monica.

Kauffman, who produced the documentary “Hava Nagilah” that traces the intriguing history of the song often head at Jewish weddings, and can be seen on Amazon Prime, You Tube and Apple TV, said she was bothered by the rise in antisemitism in the aftermath of Oct. 7.

“In some instances, it seems like Jews in America have been vilified.”

Adding that it is a pleasure to be a part of Jewish Story Partners and believes it can make a great impact.

“It is a strong catalyst in helping films get to the screen and assist in some of the many challenges that filmmakers face,” Kauffman said.

Spielberg said there may soon be funding for shorter films that can be geared to Gen Z.

“We certainly want to meet young people where they are,” she said.

Looking Ahead

Grossman said she is looking forward to a documentary on Judy Chicago (born Judith Sylvia Cohen), who is considered to be one of the most impactful feminist artists. Grossman said the film, directed by Kate Amend and Tim Marrinan, is very moving. Libresco also said she is looking forward to “Art Spiegelman: Disaster Is My Muse” directed by Molly Bernstein and Philip Dolin about the creator of the graphic novel “Maus.” “A Gift For Laughter” will examine Jews in comedy, while “My Friend Sam,” currently in post-production, features Russian born singer-songwriter Regina Spektor speaking with Holocaust survivor Samuel Marder, who mentored her and talks about his painful past. “Two Minutes of Hate,” currently in production and directed by Rachel Boynton, examines digital misinformation and specifically the Israeli-Hamas conflict.“All God’s Children,” directed by Ondi Timoner and soon to premiere at Doc NYC, focuses on the interfaith work done by a White reform rabbi and a Black Baptist preacher.

Grossman and Libresco said the less than 1% of Jewish philanthropic dollars go to Jewish arts and culture.

“We think arts and culture — this is the way to share our experiences and invite dialogue,” Libresco said.

Spielberg, whose brother is director Steven Spielberg, said it was an honor to produce “Above and Beyond” which Grossman directed, and showcase the American pilots who risked their lives to help save the state of Israel from destruction.

“None of the heroic men in the film are alive anymore,” she said. “But we can hear their stories in the film.”

Her father, Arnold, was drafted into the Army a month after Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor and he assisted in designing new airplane antennas for radio communication.

Those who contribute to Jewish Story Partners can help ensure potent documentaries of Jewish identity fly high.

“There are so many stories to be told,” Spielberg said. “I believe the power of well-made films can have a big effect on society. I really do.”