Film on how “Fiddler on the Roof” became a classic, to be shown at the J

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Director Norman Jewison and actor Chaim Topol (Tevye) share a laugh on the set of the 1971 film “Fiddler on the Roof.” Courtesy of Zeitgeist Films.

The St. Louis Jewish Film Festival is hosting a movie screening of the documentary “Fiddler’s Journey to the Big Screen” on Sunday, July 17 at 4 pm. The film looks back at producer-director Norman Jewison’s 1971 feature version of the beloved stage musical, “Fiddler on the Roof”. The showing will take place at the J’s Staenberg Family Complex’s Performing Arts Center.

Narrated by Jeff Goldblum, the film captures the humor and drama of Jewison’s quest to recreate the lost world of Jewish life in Tsarist Russia and re-envisions the beloved stage hit as a wide-screen epic.

Oscar-nominated filmmaker Daniel Raim puts us in the director’s chair and in Jewison’s heart and mind, drawing on behind-the-scenes footage and never-before-seen stills, as well as interviews with Jewison, actresses, and more. The film explores how the experience of making “Fiddler” deepens Jewison as an artist and revives his soul.

Last year, marked the 50th anniversary of the film musical that was once called, “the most powerful movie musical ever made.”

Tickets for the showing are $14 including fees and will be available for purchase on June 1 and can be purchased here.