Film Festival
GERMAN FILMS @ TORONTO JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL
Co-presented with the Goethe-Institut Toronto
The Toronto Jewish Film Festival is launching a re-imagined version of the Festival 2020 that will be presented in 2 parts. The first part of TJFF will be a ground-breaking online Festival that will take place May 30-June 7th with two German co-productions:
"How Holocaust Came to TV" by Alice Agneskirchner (Germany, 2019, 89min)
Monday, June 1st
In "How Holocaust Came to TV" the filmmaker traces the events of 1979, when the four-part US series "Holocaust" was first broadcast in Germany. The series tells the story of the fictitious Jewish family Weiss and the fictitious family of SS member Erik Dorf in Berlin during the Nazi era. When 20 million viewers watched the series on four consecutive days in January 1979, this changed the collective view of Nazi crimes virtually overnight. Agneskirchner's film traces the history of this emotional television event 40 years ago: from its creation and shooting to its broadcast and the enormous reaction in Germany, including Nazis trying to prevent its airing by bombing broadcasting stations.
"Conrad Veidt: My Life" by Mark Rappaport (USA/France, 2019, 61min)
Thursday, June 4
Critic Jonathan Rosenbaum selected this fascinating film as one of the ten best of 2019. German actor Conrad Veidt is best remembered for playing Nazi Major Strasser in "Casablanca". In reality, he was an ardent anti-fascist who left Nazi Germany for Britain, falsely claiming to be Jewish in solidarity with his Jewish wife. Using clips from Veidt’s films, acclaimed director Mark Rappaport ("Rock Hudson’s Home Movies") imagines the actor narrating his life and career from the silent era, including his leading roles in "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" and "The Man Who Laughs" (which inspired the character of "The Joker"), through to his Hollywood years where he often played Nazis.
The Goethe-Institut Toronto is looking forward to continuing our long-standing partnership with TJFF in the fall as the festival continues with part two from October 22 – November 1 at select theatres across the GTA. Goethe-Institut Toronto Program Curator Jutta Brendemühl is on the 2020 TJFF jury for the David A. Stein Documentary Award.
The TJFF FAQ page answers your questions about the virtual festival.
Part of the Goethe Institut's focus on German film
Details
Online