A scene from the musical melodrama Bar Mitzvah (1935; Yiddish, with English subtitles), which screens 2 p.m. Sunday, May 15, at the Berman Center for the Performing Arts Elizabeth Applebaum Sp0cL.. Event Special to the Jewish News W Nether it's an over- the-top event featur- ing Destiny's Child and held on a private island in the French Riviera (like the party for Brandon Green, son of British billionaire Philip Green) or a small service followed by a Kiddush with gefilte fish and salads, a bar or bat mitzvah is a once-in-a-lifetime occa- sion. This year, the Jewish Community Center of Metropolitan Detroit's Lenore Marwil Jewish Film Festival turns 13, which means a great celebration but no obligatory gifts to buy, no DJ playing Ke$ha's "Tik Tok" over and over and, best of all, no speeches delivered with all the excitement of an adult contemporary radio station. In short, it's pure fun. This year's film festival will feature more than 40 films plus events and programs and activities, many of which will be held at the JCC's new Berman Center for the Performing Arts in West Bloomfield. "We are excited to have a permanent home at the new Berman Center for the Performing Arts," said Film Festival Chair Eric Lumberg."This fantastic the- ater will help the Lenore Marwil Jewish Film Festival grow even more. Our plan is to expand film screenings throughout the years and try new things. Come see a film you won't find anywhere else in our state-of-the-art theater, where there is not a bad seat in the house." "Looking back on how much the Lenore Marwil Jewish Film Festival has grown over the past 13 years, I am in awe of our community and its dedica- tion to film and the arts:' added Film Festival Director Shari Lebo. "Our festi- val has grown to six locations this year- and is reaching an ever wider audience throughout the entire state of Michigan. We have truly become "Michigan's Jewish Film Festival," with locations from here in Metro Detroit to Ann Arbor, Flint and Kalamazoo. We have literally scoured the globe to find the best films possible and really hope that viewers enjoy this 13th annual Jewish film fes- tival." Can't decide what to see? Here are 13 (of course) films to get you started. Anita is the charming story of a young girl lost and found. Anita is Jewish and Argentinean, and she has Down syndrome. She lives with her mother in a world that is safe, dependable, loving. n addition to the film-related events described in the 13 films profiled in this article, this year's film fes- tival also will include the following programs, all at the Berman Center for the Performing Arts in West Bloomfield: I And then Anita gets lost. The winner of both the Best Film and the Audience Award at the 2009 International Latino Film Festival, Anita is, in the words of actor Edward James Olmos, one of the few films that truly have "great universal value." Anita screens 8 p.m. Tuesday, May 17,at the Berman Center in West Bloomfield; 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 18,at the Michigan Theater in Ann Arbor; and 7:30 p.m. Thursday, May 19, at the Flint Institute of Arts. Bekowet: By the Will of G d is the true story of a small Ethiopian boy determined to live despite the tragedy and despair that sur- round him. Bekowet was very sick and only 9 years old when he overheard his parents whisper: "It would be better if he died." But Bekowet wants to live, and so he hobbles 60 miles to the nearest town, where he discovers a Jewish doctor from America named Rick Hodes. And that's when a miracle happens. Dr. Hodes also was the focus of Marilyn Berger's unforgettable book, This Is a Soul: The Mission of Rick Hodes. Bekowet screens 2 p.m. Wednesday, May 25, at the Berman Center in West Bloomfield. - 0 Brothers is an Israeli film telling the story of two brothers who struggle to remain family despite their profound differences. One brother, Dan, has no interest in religion and lives on a kibbutz. The other brother, Aaron, is an observant man with a doctorate in law and philosophy. The two men haven't spoken in years. And then they meet again in Jerusalem when Aaron comes to defend the rights of Torah students in Israel. Brothers screens 5 p.m. Tuesday, May 17, at the Uptown Palladium in Birmingham; 2 p.m. Thursday, May 19,at the Berman Center in West Bloomfield, followed by a talk-back and refreshments; and 1:30 p.m. Thursday, May 19, at the Michigan Theater in Ann Arbor. Holy Rollers is a true story of a young observant Jew, the drug world and redemption. Sam Gold (Jesse Eisenberg, who played Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg in The Social Network) is an unassuming student in Brooklyn. His neighbor, Yosef Zimmerman (West Bloomfield High School grad Justin Bartha) is about to make him an interesting offer: Could Sam help move some "medicine" from Europe to the United States? So begins a breathtaking ride into the world of ecstasy, drug cartels and deceit. Holy Rollers screens 8 p.m. Wednesday, May 18, at the Michigan Theater in Ann Arbor; 9:30 p.m. Saturday, May 21, at the Berman Center in West Bloomfield; and 6 p.m. Wednesday, May 25, at the David Adamay Undergraduate Library at Wayne State University The Human Resources Manager, named Best Feature at the 2011 Lenore Marwil Jewish Film Festival, begins with a corpse and ends with friendship. A human resources manager at Israel's largest bakery is in a car with a young Russian woman's dead body. Her name is Yulia, and she was killed in a suicide bombing. But no one comes to claim her body. The human resources manager at the bakery where Yulia worked must now deal with this curious situation — along with the odd check found on the dead woman's body. The Human Resources Manager is a story of loneliness and a search for meaning, and how a group of seemingly lost souls bind together even in the face of great despair. The Human Resources Manager screens 8 p.m. Sunday, May 15, at the Berman Center in West Bloomfield; 8 0 Lucky Thirteen on page 46 • FLIPCLIPS, a program of short films created by Jewish teens in Southeast Michigan in conjunction with Detroit Public Television, award-winning filmmakers Sue Marx and Allyson Fink Rockwell, and the Federation's Alliance for Jewish Education, will be presented 2:30 p.m. Sunday, May 22. A group of teens set off on a jour- ney designed to connect them to Detroit and their Jewish community. Becoming modern-day storytellers, they produced a series of short films showcasing Detroit and considering what makes this community a one-of- a-kind. FLIPCLIPS also airs on Detroit Public TV-Channel 56 2:30 p.m. Sunday, May 15. •Edie and Thea: A Very Long Engagement is the story of Edie Windsor and Thea Spyer, whose engagement spanned more than 40 years. Following the film pre- sentation 8 p.m. Wednesday, May 18, Jay Kaplan, staff attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union- Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgender Project, and Edie Windsor will speak via videoconference. •Jaffa is the story of a young Palestinian man and an Israeli woman who fall in love. Following the film presentation 8 p.m. Monday, May 16, at the Berman Center in West Bloomfield, Rabbi Tamara Kolton of the Birmingham Temple will speak. •Five Hours from Paris is a surpris- ing love story from Israel. Following the 5 p.m. Sunday, May 22, showing, Rabbi Jason Miller of Congregation rchiyah will lead a discussion. •Jubanos is the true story of the 1,500 Jews who still remain in Cuba. Following the 2 p.m. Tuesday, May 24, screening, JCC Travel Director Marilyn Wolfe will lead a discussion. •Shorts Program, presented 5 p.m. Tuesday, May 24, features local film- maker David Devries. LI - Elizabeth Applebaum 3N May 12 a 2011 45