Jewish Film Directory

(Hardback)

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

Jews have played a constant and diverse role in the growth of cinema and film-making. This unique book provides a catalogue of over 1,200 films about Jews and Jewish history, culture, personalities, and issues. It contains entries that have been collected from a variety of sources worldwide (much of it personal correspondence with film-makers themselves) and there is international coverage of the following genres: documentaries; foreign language films; Hollywood features; film testimony; made-for-television mini-series, dramas, and documentaries; educational/instructional films; and Yiddish cinema. Coverage spans from Wallace McCutcheon's silent two-reeler, Old Isaac, the Pawnbroker (1907) to Erwin Leiser's new film, The Class of 1940/Jahrgang 1940, to be released in 1992. Short, medium, and full-length films and monumental mini-series are included--from Evald Schrom's 12-minute Psalm/Zalm to Dan Curtis's 18-hour War and Remembrance. The second part of the book provides a section of comprehensive indexes, cross-referencing all films by subject (e.g. Amsterdam, the Catskill mountains, Nazi propaganda films, the Six Day War, Yiddish culture), director, country of production (at least 28, from Argentina to Yugoslavia), and source material (i.e. novels, plays, stories, diaries). The volume also includes a list of Jewish film festivals and useful addresses of archives and institutes, as well as a bibliography. This is an extremely valuable book for filmographers, historians, researchers, students, libraries, institutes, festival programmers, and film buffs.

Reviews

Recommended for collections that support research or academic programs in film studies or the history of cinema.-ARBA
The chief strength of this work is that information has been collected both from film archives and libraries and from individuals who have worked on the films in this subject area. Recommended for collections that support research or academic programs in film studies or the history of cinema.-ARBA
The statistics are all in the subtitle: more than 1,200 films from 32 countries spanning 85 years through 1991. There is more, however, to recommend this work than sheer quantitative coverage. Indexes provide access to the alphabetically arranged title entries by director, country of production, subject, and source material (authors of novels, plays, diaries, etc., on which the films were based). Lists of Jewish film archives, centers, and festivals follow the indexes, along with a bibliography of more than a dozen relevant titles. Many kinds of films are represented, such as made-for-television movies, feature films, documentaries, and animated subjects. In general, newsreel footage is not included. Evidence of this work's international scope is found in the many foreign-language and Yiddish films listed. There has been an attempt to list titles in their original language (spelling and accents preserved) with cross-references to alternative titles. Full credit information is supplied with each entry, including running time, year of production, classification (e.g., short feature, documentary, animation), and a brief annotation. Many entries also include a reference to Variety or the Monthly Film Bulletin. Another related work (not in the bibliography) still in print is The Holocaust, Israel and the Jews: Motion Pictures in the National Archives compiled by Charles Lawrence Gilbert (National Archives Trust Fund Board, 1989). Most of the films listed in that work are those acquired or produced by federal agencies. There are entries for donations of newsreels shown in movie theaters. It complements the Jewish Film Directory, which does not include newsreels. The Jewish Film Directorywill be of interest to film and Jewish history collections, especially when used in conjunction with the National Archives publication.-Reference Books Bulletin
"Recommended for collections that support research or academic programs in film studies or the history of cinema."-ARBA
"The chief strength of this work is that information has been collected both from film archives and libraries and from individuals who have worked on the films in this subject area. Recommended for collections that support research or academic programs in film studies or the history of cinema."-ARBA
"The statistics are all in the subtitle: more than 1,200 films from 32 countries spanning 85 years through 1991. There is more, however, to recommend this work than sheer quantitative coverage. Indexes provide access to the alphabetically arranged title entries by director, country of production, subject, and source material (authors of novels, plays, diaries, etc., on which the films were based). Lists of Jewish film archives, centers, and festivals follow the indexes, along with a bibliography of more than a dozen relevant titles. Many kinds of films are represented, such as made-for-television movies, feature films, documentaries, and animated subjects. In general, newsreel footage is not included. Evidence of this work's international scope is found in the many foreign-language and Yiddish films listed. There has been an attempt to list titles in their original language (spelling and accents preserved) with cross-references to alternative titles. Full credit information is supplied with each entry, including running time, year of production, classification (e.g., short feature, documentary, animation), and a brief annotation. Many entries also include a reference to Variety or the Monthly Film Bulletin. Another related work (not in the bibliography) still in print is The Holocaust, Israel and the Jews: Motion Pictures in the National Archives compiled by Charles Lawrence Gilbert (National Archives Trust Fund Board, 1989). Most of the films listed in that work are those acquired or produced by federal agencies. There are entries for donations of newsreels shown in movie theaters. It complements the Jewish Film Directory, which does not include newsreels. The Jewish Film Directorywill be of interest to film and Jewish history collections, especially when used in conjunction with the National Archives publication."-Reference Books Bulletin

Author Bio

evens /f Matthew /r ed.