East Bay International Jewish Film Festival

About the Event

We are delighted to return to the Century 16 in Pleasant Hill for six days of Festival enjoyment. We will also visit the Vine Cinema in Livermore on March 16 for two special screenings.

No more waiting in line! All moviegoers will be asked to select their seats at time of ticket purchase for films in the Century 16. Pass holders will reserve their seats before individual tickets go on sale. IMPORTANT: For films shown at the VINE CINEMA in Livermore, tickets will be sold at-the-door after 3 PM on the day of the screening.

In-Theatre passes cost $180 and go on sale on February 6. They provide tickets for all of our in-theatre screenings and allow you to select your seats before individual tickets go on sale February 10. Tickets cost $12 for films screened before 2 PM and $15 for films screened after 2 PM.

Tickets must be purchased in advance for films at the Century 16 and can only be purchased online. If you plan to buy tickets at-the-door, you must use your phone to purchase them.

Schedule

Thursday, February 27, 2025

Ain’t No Back to a Merry-Go-Round

12:45 - 2:45 PM @ Theatre 1 - Century 16 Pleasant Hill

“Can I ask your race?” the security guard at Maryland’s Glen Echo Amusement Park asks a black man, Rev. Laurence Henry, as he tries to enter. “My race? I belong to the human race,” he replies. And he is denied entry. Emmy-Award winning director Ilana Trachtman delivers a superb documentary that covers the courage of students at Howard University who sat on the whites-only carousel and the Jewish community members who were persistent to help bring about change.

Ain’t No Back to a Merry-Go-Round

1 - 3 PM @ Theatre 14 - Century 16 Pleasant Hill

“Can I ask your race?” the security guard at Maryland’s Glen Echo Amusement Park asks a black man, Rev. Laurence Henry, as he tries to enter. “My race? I belong to the human race,” he replies. And he is denied entry. Emmy-Award winning director Ilana Trachtman delivers a superb documentary that covers the courage of students at Howard University who sat on the whites-only carousel and the Jewish community members who were persistent to help bring about change.

This is My Mother

3:30 - 5:30 PM @ Theatre 1 - Century 16 Pleasant Hill

"I feel more like a cop than a son." Thirty-year-old Pierre has woken up at dawn to buy the flowers he needs for his shop and now must drive his bipolar mother Judith back to the sanitarium where she resides. In a ride that should only take a few hours, Pierre starts a 24-hour odyssey with her, navigating not only the French countryside but also his mother’s uncertain future. Marked by exceptional performances!

This is My Mother

3:45 - 5:45 PM @ Theatre 14 - Century 16 Pleasant Hill

"I feel more like a cop than a son." Thirty-year-old Pierre has woken up at dawn to buy the flowers he needs for his shop and now must drive his bipolar mother Judith back to the sanitarium where she resides. In a ride that should only take a few hours, Pierre starts a 24-hour odyssey with her, navigating not only the French countryside but also his mother’s uncertain future. Marked by exceptional performances!

Soda

7 - 9 PM @ Theatre 1 - Century 16 Pleasant Hill

1956 Israel. A beautiful seamstress moves to a neighborhood of Holocaust survivors. Rumors about her having been a “kapo” in a concentration camp shake up the neighborhood. But Shalom, a former resistance fighter, is torn between his passion for her and his commitment to his wife and to his community. Soda won 10 Ophir awards, including Best Picture, in 2023.

Soda

7:15 - 9:15 PM @ Theatre 14 - Century 16 Pleasant Hill

1956 Israel. A beautiful seamstress moves to a neighborhood of Holocaust survivors. Rumors about her having been a “kapo” in a concentration camp shake up the neighborhood. But Shalom, a former resistance fighter, is torn between his passion for her and his commitment to his wife and to his community. Soda won 10 Ophir awards, including Best Picture, in 2023.

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Date: February 22 - March 20, 2025

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