‘As You Like It’
Jerusalem theater group brings Shakespeare to life
The 35th Jerusalem Film Festival will open with a screening of Eliran Malka’s film The Unorthodox, at a festive event at the Sultan’s Pool Amphitheater on July 26. The festival will run at the Jerusalem Cinematheque and other venues around the city until August 5.
The Unorthodox dramatizes the story of the founding of the Shas Party in 1983 and stars Shuli Rand. Malka is one of the creators of the hit television show Shababnikim and a graduate of the Ma’aleh School of Television, Film & the Arts, Jerusalem. The Unorthodox is his feature-film debut.
The closing night film will be Wes Anderson’s latest film, Isle of Dogs, which opened the Berlin Film Festival. It’s an anime-style film set in Japan, which tells the story of dogs that are exiled on an island after a virus they carry affects humans. The characters are voiced by Bill Murray, Bryan Cranston, Greta Gerwig, Jeff Goldblum, Koyu Rankin, Scarlett Johansson, Edward Norton and Bob Balaban. Isle of Dogs will be released in theaters around Israel on August 9.
More than 180 films from over 60 countries will be screened at the festival. Other events around the city will include Parkolnoa, an outdoor project in Independence Park, which will present screenings and performances for a variety of audiences, including children. The festival will also feature a traveling movie theater equipped with quality projection equipment that will tour the city’s neighborhoods and show the festival’s best films free of charge.
The festival director is Dr. Noa Regev, and the artistic director is Elad Samorzik.
The full festival program will be announced, and tickets will go on sale, on July 5 at the festival website, https://www.jff.org.il