In her moving debut feature, Israeli director Astar Elkayam tackles the physical and emotional challenges two women face when they decide to start a family. Initially optimistic, Bar and Omer embrace the process, eagerly combing through a catalogue of potential donors and facing the insemination process with humour. After Omer repeatedly fails to become pregnant, a sense of failure gnaws at them, threatening to undermine their relationship.
Mor Polanuer and Agam Schuster (Your Honour) deliver outstanding performances, realistically capturing the toll that the IVF process takes on the young couple.
From acclaimed Israeli director Eytan Fox (Walk on Water, The Bubble), Sublet is a poignant depiction of the transformative power of love through a cross-generational encounter.
Michael, a travel columnist for The New York Times, takes on a rental apartment for a week’s assignment to discover the real Tel Aviv. He sublets an apartment from Tomer, a twenty-something gay film student who offers to act as his guide. Tomer’s carefree life of partying and casual sex are an affront to Michael whose life experiences have led him to more conservative views on love and relationships. Over five days together, the two find they have more in common than they thought, and form a bond that emotionally liberates them both.
This poignant and comic story traces the coming-of-age of two Jewish teenage girls—one white and straight, and the other Black and queer. Set in Rochester, NY, the film begins at the funeral service of their former Hebrew school classmate who suddenly commits suicide. A complicated romance unexpectedly arises as best friends Carrie and Hannah (played by Shiva Baby’s Rachel Sennott) navigate their feelings about this tragedy and themselves, and try to make sense of their teacher’s well-meaning but misguided advice about grieving.
Plus61J Media proudly presents the Australian premiere of Past Continuous.
Past Continuous tells the story of Sydney couple Oscar Shub and Ilan Buchman. In 2018, Shub and Buchman became Australia’s first same-sex couple to be legally married in a religious ceremony.
Made by award-winning documentary filmmaker Kineret Hay-Gillor, the film chronicles Shub and Buchman’s relationship – beginning in Tel Aviv in 1971 – their eventual marriage at Sydney Emanuel Synagogue, and a past that still holds painful memories.
Join Oscar Shub, Ilan Buchman and Kineret Hay-Gillor in a post-screening Q&A followed by drinks and nibbles (all inclusive for $15 general admission).
Thu 17th Mar 2022, 7:00 pm – 9:30 pm Classic Cinemas 9 Gordon St, Elsternwick
It would be remiss to recount the life of the legendary playwright Stephen Sondheim (AJN 03/12) without also acknowledging that he was a gay man who only came out at the age of 40.
He met his partner Jeffrey Romley in 2004, whom he described as a great joy in his life. They married in 2017 and it was in his husband’s arms that he died. Although he did not have children, he said if he had his time again he would definitely have been a parent, admitting he fell victim to historical stigmas around gay men parenting.
The erasure of Sondheim’s personal life and sexual orientation is disappointing, as they are just as important as his professional achievements. Had he been married to a woman, it would have been noted along with the duration of their relationship.
We present the films in the 31st Melbourne Queer Film Festival that will appeal to a Jewish audience
The 31st Melbourne Queer Film Festival runs from November 18 to 29 2021. The following is a selection of films from the festival program that contain Jewish content, relevance, or are from Israel. The full program can be viewed here.
Erez, a rising star in the Israeli swimming scene arrives at a godforsaken training camp held in a boarding school where the winning athlete gets a coveted ticket to the Olympics. There he meets the beautiful and talented Nevo, who awakens long repressed desires in him, throwing his Olympic chances (and libido) into turmoil. This attraction is complicated further by their stern swimming coach who does not believe in fraternizing between competitors and is warned to stay away or risk his Olympic dreams. Will Erez act upon his feelings for Nevo and risk losing everything he has strived for becomes the urgent question at the heart of this vibrant and engaging film. Speedos, water, desire… The Swimmer is a winning romantic drama that will leave you cheering right up to the finish line.
Year: 2020 | Country: Israel | Genre: Drama/Romance | Theme: Gay | Language: Hebrew/English Subtitles | Premiere: Australian | Director: Adam Kalderon | Courtesy: M-Appeal
[This film is not specifically Jewish but features a prominent Jewish character]
93 Mins
Lane, Bertie and Fred once shared a polyamorous relationship in New Orleans. Lane loved Bertie, Fred loved Bertie, they had a balance that worked… until it didn’t, and Lane vanished from their lives. Two years later, Bertie and Fred have gotten married and are living at Fred’s family home in the countryside of southern France. When Lane unexpectedly shows up in Bertie’s seemingly idyllic new life, she finds her former lover much different than she remembers. Bertie is disillusioned in her jazz career and clearly alienated in this small, white, European town. However, their spark is quickly ignited and when Lane attempts to recreate their old, carefree dynamic, complications arise. This is compacted further by Lane’s increasing flirtations with Noa, a sultry young artist and former soldier. Winner of the audience award at Sundance Film Festival, Marion Hill’s debut feature is a sensual, carefree delight.
Year: 2021 |Country: France/USA | Genre: Drama/Romance | Theme: Lesbian | Language: English | Premiere: Australian | Director: Marion Hill | Courtesy: WaZabi Films
Fri 19 Nov | 6:30 PM | Cinema Nova Cinema 8
Sun 21 Nov | 9PM | Cinema Nova Cinema 1
Sat 27 Nov | 7:30 PM | Village Cinemas Vpremium 11
In post-war Germany Hans is imprisoned again and again for being homosexual. Due to the notorious paragraph 175 his desire for freedom is systematically destroyed. The one steady relationship in his life becomes his long-time cellmate, Viktor, a convicted murderer. What starts as animosity develops over the years into something called love. Director Sebastian Meise asks you to imagine a world where love is forbidden by law and punished with imprisonment. What sounds like a dystopia was a reality for gay men in Germany right up until the late 60s. Bolstered by a magnetic and soulful performance by Franz Rogowski as Hans and rightfully winning the Un Certain Regard Jury Prize at Cannes Film Festival this year, Great Freedom is a stunning drama that is destined to become a queer classic.
Meise’s film is an exquisite marriage of personal, political and sensual storytelling – Variety
Year: 2021 | Country: Austria | Genre: Drama/Romance | Theme: Gay | Language: German/English Subtitles | Premiere: Melbourne | Director: Sebastian Meise | Courtesy: Madman Entertainment
Publisher Wakefield Press has announced the acquisition of world rights to Roz Bellamy’s Mood, a memoir exploring the intersections of mental illness, queerness, gender diversity and Jewish identity.
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Wakefield Press associate publisher Jo Case says that when she noticed Bellamy was writing a memoir, she was intrigued, and thought about asking to read it. She’d admired Bellamy’s essay in Growing Up Queer in Australia (Black Inc.), and their essay exploring queer and Jewish identity in Living and Loving in Diversity, an anthology published by Wakefield Press in 2018 (edited by Maria Pallotta-Chiarolli).
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Roz Bellamy is a first-generation Jewish Australian who grew up in a progressive family, attending an orthodox school. Roz, who identifies as nonbinary, met their wife, Rachel, as a university student, as the pair made their first tentative forays into queer culture – and fell in love – through a Buffy the Vampire Slayer online message board.
MEDAL [OAM] OF THE ORDER OF AUSTRALIA IN THE GENERAL DIVISION
James OSTROBURSKI, St Kilda East VIC 3183
James Ostroburski
For service to the community through charitable organisations.
Philanthropy
Founder, Ostroburski Family Fund.
Founding Member, New Generation of Giving Program, Victorian Division, Philanthropy Australia, 2013.
Deputy Chairman and Co-Founder, Surgeons Impact Fund, since 2018.
Member, Arts Philanthropy Review Panel, Victorian Ministry for the Arts, 2014
MelbourneRecitalCentre
Patron, since 2013.
Member, Amplify Program for Emerging Artists, 2015.
Dancehouse
Chairman, 2014-2017.
Director, 2013-2018.
TheArts
BoardBank Volunteer, Australian Business Arts Foundation, 2009-2011.
Governor, Arts Centre Melbourne Foundation, 2013-2016.
Trustee, Bundanon Trust, 2014-2016.
Director, Australian Chamber Orchestra, 2015-2020.
Director, Institute of Creative Health, since 2016.
Director, National Theatre, since 2016.
Director, Festival of Jewish Arts and Music, since 2020.
Other
Director, Jewish Museum of Australia, 2015-2020.
Non-Executive Director, Cannvalate, current.
Chairman, Nexus Global Youth Summit, 2015-2016.
Banking
Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Kooyong Group, since 2017.
Head of Medical Finance, Grimsley Wealth, 2015-2016.
Investec Bank (Australia), 2010-2015.
Credit Union Australia Ltd, 2009-2010.
James Ostroburski started his philanthropic journey at a young age when a sense of community and making an impact was instilled in him and says that his communal involvement is part of his day-to-day life, not something he does separately.
“I think that it is wonderful to be recognised for something I do out of love of community and it is very humbling. The Awards system is important because it recognises people who quietly, or otherwise, support the communities in their lives.
“I am somewhat surprised to be recognised at my age. It is a great way for other young Australians to see that they can make a difference now and not wait until they retire” he told J-Wire.
Enjoy the photos, videos and media coverage of Jews of Pride 2021. We topped out at 165 participants this year, exceeding the 140 who attended in 2020.
