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Docuseries will kick off the J’s new Israeli Film Club

ELLEN FUTTERMAN, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Published January 31, 2024

Shir Dagan is the Israeli Shaliach at the J, providing Israeli education, engagement and community building programs.

The St. Louis Jewish Film Festival doesn’t start until April 7, but cinephiles — especially ones who enjoy short documentaries — as well as movie lovers will want to be part of the Israeli Film Club, led by Snir Dagan, the Israeli Shaliach (emissary) at the Jewish Community Center.

The free club will meet from 6:30 to 8 p.m. on consecutive Thursday evenings in February at the J’s Performing Arts Center. Three short documentary films will be shown on both Feb. 8 and 15. The first set of films will focus on the surprise and shock of the attacks by Hamas on Israel on Oct. 7. The second set, shown on Feb. 15, will look at the impact these attacks had on women and those taken hostage and their families.

“I don’t want to say too much (about the films) because I want us all to watch them together, then talk about them and share our thoughts and opinions,” Dagan said, adding that all the short films were made on, or after, the Oct. 7 attacks.

He went onto explain that these documentaries come from an Israeli show called “Uvda,” which means “fact” in Hebrew. Similar to our “60 Minutes,” “Uvda” has been on the air in Israel for the past 30 years and focuses on in-depth investigative reports and high-profile interviews as well as compelling documentaries.

The last session of the Israeli Film Club, on Feb. 22, will feature “The Seam Line,” a docuseries that streams on the Israeli-based streaming platform IZZY, with its host and creator Avi Melamed. This docuseries about Jerusalem examines “the fragile threads that, woven together, create Jerusalem’s Christian, Jewish, and Muslim tapestry – simultaneously connecting and dividing Israelis and Palestinians, religious and secular, sacred and profane,” according to the series’ description.

Melamed, a former Israeli intelligence official and senior advisor on Arab affairs, will be at the J’s Staenberg Family Complex at 7 p.m. on Feb. 28 to talk about the war in Gaza, tackling questions such as: Do we really understand what this war is all about? How we got here? What does it all mean? Where are we going? And what does “the day after” look like? You can register for this free event at: jccstl.com/IsraelBriefing

“I would suggest anyone going to Avi’s presentation come see ‘The Seam Line’ first to better understand what he is talking about and where his views are coming from,” said Dagan. “He will be happy to talk about ‘The Seam Line’ should there be questions.”

Dagan also explained his goal in starting the club.

“While Israelis are welcome to attend, I hope Americans will join me because I think what happened in Israel is such an important piece of history and we need to preserve and understand it.

“I love the documentary series from ‘Uvda,’” he added. “They are very professional in what they are doing and the fact that this series is called “fact” in Hebrew makes it more much reliable and up to date. You can really rely on it to actually see and feel what really took place in Israel from Oct. 7 to where we are now.”

To register for any, or all, of the Israel Film Club, go to https://jccstl.com/event/israeli-film-club/2024-02-08/

About the Contributor

ELLEN FUTTERMAN, Editor-in-Chief

A native of Westbury, New York, Ellen Futterman broke into the world of big city journalism as a general assignment reporter for the Los Angeles Herald-Examiner in the latter part of the 20th century. Deciding that Tinsel Town was not exciting enough for her, she moved on to that hub of glamour and sophistication, Belleville, Ill., where she became a feature writer, columnist and food editor for the Belleville News-Democrat. A year later the St. Louis Post-Dispatch scooped her up, neither guessing at the full range of her talents, nor the extent of her shoe collection. She went on to work at the Post-Dispatch for 25 years, during which time she covered hard news, education, features, investigative projects, profiles, sports, entertainment, fashion, interiors, business, travel and movies. She won numerous major local and national awards for her reporting on "Women Who Kill" and on a four-part series about teen-age pregnancy, 'Children Having Children.'" Among her many jobs at the newspaper, Ellen was a columnist for three years, Arts and Entertainment Editor, Critic-at-large and Daily Features (Everyday) Editor. She invented two sections from scratch, one of which recently morphed from Get Out, begun in 1995, to GO. In January of 2009, Ellen joined the St. Louis Jewish Light as its editor, where she is responsible for overseeing editorial operations, including managing both staff members and freelancers. Under her tutelage, the Light has won 16 Rockower Awards — considered the Jewish Pulitzer’s — including two personally for Excellence in Commentary for her weekly News & Schmooze column. She also is the communications content editor for the Arts and Education Council of St. Louis. Ellen and her husband, Jeff Burkett, a middle school principal, live in Olivette and have three children. Ellen can be reached at 314-743-3669 or at [email protected].