Film Pittsburgh announced the lineup for the 26th annual JFilm Festival – 11 days of Jewish-themed films

Film Pittsburgh announced the lineup for the 26th annual JFilm Festival – 11 days of Jewish-themed films, guest speakers and visiting filmmakers.

The festival returns to SouthSide Works Cinema this year with screenings from March 7-17.

The lineup features 21 narrative and documentary films from 11 countries, all of which are Pittsburgh premieres, including the world premiere of “Back to Maracana.”

In the film, Robert, a divorced 40-year-old, finds himself on an unexpected trip from Israel to Brazil for the World Cup with his father and son. His Brazilian father, a passionate soccer fan, has brought them to cheer on his beloved home team, but Robert’s spoiled 12-year-old son hates soccer and would rather be anywhere else. The film will make its world premiere at the festival on March 9, followed by a question and answer session with director Jorge Gurvich on March 9 and 12.

The festival opens with “The Unorthodox,” an underdog story that features humor, suspense, and great music. A band of misfits challenge the ruling political party in 1980s Israel. Despite the less-than-ethical methods they employ at times, it’s hard not to root for this gang in their effort to create a more just system. The screening will be followed by an after-party catered by Tallulah’s on March 7.

In their documentary “Chewdaism: A Taste of Jewish Montreal,” comedy duo Eli Batalion and Jamie Elman, creators of the critically acclaimed web series “YidLife Crisis,” take a culinary journey through their beloved city in search of the best Jewish foods it has to offer. Their day-long tour celebrates the rich history of Jewish Montreal, with an array of guides sharing stories along the way. The screening will be followed by a bagel brunch catered by Smallman Street Deli on March 10.

Sponsored by the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh, ”Who Will Write Our History” on March 10 follows a clandestine group of journalists, scholars, and community leaders in the Warsaw Ghetto who vowed to defeat Nazi lies and propaganda not with guns or fists but with pen and paper. The film mixes the writings of the secret Oyneg Shabes archive with new interviews, rarely seen footage, and stunning dramatizations to transport us inside the lives of the courageous resistance fighters who risked everything so that their archive would survive the war, even if they did not.

There are over 9,000 Jews in Ethiopia who speak Hebrew, keep kosher, and have relatives in Israel—a country that continues to deny them citizenship. “The Passengers” documents their struggle through the eyes of two young men who travel to the United States to make an impassioned plea for assistance from American Jews. The screening will be followed by a question and answer session with director Ryan S. Porush on March 15.

Screenings are held at SouthSide Works Cinema and other select locations around Pittsburgh, including the Hollywood Theater, Levinson Hall in the Jewish Community Center and Seton Hill University.

Two screenings will be followed by ”Film Schmooze,” a casual post-film discussion led by local scholars, sponsored by the University f Pittsburgh’s Jewish Studies Program.

Details: 412-426-3456 or filmpittsburgh.org