Jewish Film Festival kicks off tonight

The Jewish Community Center and the Museum of Fine Arts are teaming up for a third year to bring a series of thirteen new Jewish films to Houston over the next ten days. The festival include documentaries, dramas, and comedies that exhibit the variety and complexity of Jewish life.

Tonight the festival begins at 8pm with From Shtetl to Swing. Written and directed by Fabienne Rousso-Lenoir, it tells the story of the cross-pollination of Jewish and African-American musical influences, two traditions born out of exile and longing, yet charged with an energy and freedom that gave voice to a new multicultural America. The movie features many American Jewish musical artists of the early 20th century - Irving Berlin, George Gershwin, Artie Shaw, and many others. Tonight's festivities also include a performance by The Sway Machinery, a unique Jewish soul band. The festival is generously brought to you by The Jewish Community Center of Houston Endowment Fund and the Jewish Community Center of Houston’s Patron of the Arts.