Teaneck International Film Festival Announces 2024 Program

The Teaneck International Film Festival, with its theme, Activism:Making Change, is back! A project of The Puffin Foundation Ltd., the 19th annual festival will be held November 7-14, 2024, featuring over 25 films, panel discussions, and parties, with filmmakers, actors, elected officials and industry guests attending.

The opening night film, the narrative feature Freedom Hair, is sponsored by The National Coalition of 100 Black Women, Inc., Bergen/Passaic Chapter at Teaneck Cinemas, 503 Cedar Lane, Thursday, November 7, at 7:30 p.m.

The film is based on the real story of a Black woman's fight to start a hair braiding business in Mississippi. For the festival's Narrative Centerpiece, Egyptian filmmaker Omar Hilal, attending from Cairo, Egypt with his Academy Award shortlisted film Voy! Voy! Voy! will participate in a post-screening Q&A. Presented by Davis, Saperstein, & Salomon, Voy! Voy! Voy! is a film with humor and pathos, based on a true story of a "blind soccer team" in Egypt and the efforts of a player to fake his way out of the country. The centerpiece film includes buffet, wine, film, and talkback. The "in-person" part of the festival will run through Sunday evening, November 10th, when the closing film, Politics is a Mother, Raising Hell is Part of the Job a documentary about New Jersey Senator Loretta Weinberg, will be shown at Temple Emeth, 1666 Windsor Rd. and feature a talkback with the Senator and filmmaker. Sponsors of the film are WOW (Women of Wisdom), NCJWBCS (National Council of Jewish Women Bergen County Section), League of Women Voters of Teaneck, Arbor Terrace, Reshma Khan, and the YWCA of Northern New Jersey.

The weekend brings more features, documentaries and shorts, among them: On Golden Years, about an Indian retirement community in Florida, sponsored by Nachman, Phulwani, Zimovcak (NPZ) Law Group, P.C; Thelma, the story of a grandmother who fought back when she was scammed out of $10,000, sponsored by Age Friendly Teaneck, Adeline Wijnen and The Jewish Link; The Catskills, a documentary about the wonder years of hotels and bungalow colonies, brought to you by the Jewish Standard, and Igualada, which takes us on the campaign trail of the first Black woman to become Vice-President of Colombia, sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Teaneck and Martin Luther King Birthday Committee. Visit the festival website for a full list of all the films showing in-person during the festival weekend.

After the TIFF weekend is over, there are two bonus films being shown at Teaneck's Ethical Cultural Society on Sunday evening, November 14. The documentary Join or Die, based on the book Bowling Alone by social scientist Robert Putnam, tells us how our failure to join clubs and groups has led to a crisis in our democracy. It is sponsored by the Ethical Culture Society of Bergen County, Steven L. Finkelstein of Russo Real Estate and the Rotary Club of Teaneck. It will be shown with the short Save the Cat, a tale of a Ukrainian refugee family whose cat was returned to them in the U.S. thanks to the intervention and assistance of some caring people.

For those unable to come in-person or for filmgoers in other parts of the country, there are three virtual films that may be watched from the comfort of your own living room any time during the festival week which include moderated talkbacks. The virtual film series includes the Ethan Hawke directed Wildcat starring Laura Linney about the famed American writer Flannery O'Connor, Ultimate Citizens which chronicles the story of Iranian refugee Jamshid Khajavi, a school counselor and ultra-athlete who uses the sport of Ultimate Frisbee to help children heal and Far East Deep South which tells the story of Chinese American immigrants and their connection to the Deep South. The virtual pass includes all three films for $15.

TIFF's youngest audience is not ignored. Prior to the official opening night of November 7th, Little Kid Flicks, the collection of award-winning animated films curated from the New York International Children's Film Festival will be back again for the second year since Covid: Little Kid Flicks, for children 4 -8 years old are invited free with a paying adult through support from the Puffin Foundation and sponsorship by the Teaneck Public Library and Barbara Ostroth, Coldwell Banker Realty. This year's emcee - stepping into the big shoes of longtime host Bob McGrath (Sesame Street) - will be Miss Jolie, the Taylor Swift of New Jersey's youngest set who plays to SRO crowds. Mark the date: November 3 - 1:30 p.m., at the Puffin Cultural Forum, 20 Puffin Way in Teaneck.

Tickets are on sale now at www.teaneckfilmfestival.org. Tickets are $10 in advance, $15 at door if available, except: Little Kid Flicks (Kids are free with paying adult thanks to a grant from The Puffin Foundation), Centerpiece Gala and Film - $40 donation in advance, Virtual Film Series pass includes all three films for $15. Talkbacks will follow most films. And check out all that is on this year's program - for all interests and all ages.

The film festival with a social conscience is committed to telling stories that need to be heard, and inspiring thoughtful discussion, involvement, and activism. The documentaries, features, and shorts cover a broad range of subjects that are of concern to all: Civil Rights, women's rights, immigration, aging, labor, LGBTQ+ concerns, social justice, the environment, and more. According to Executive Director Jeremy Lentz, "This year is more important than ever before, as the country struggles to preserve democracy and we engage in an effort to bring together people of diverse backgrounds and opinions and find common ground. We have films that will make you ponder, cry, laugh, and - we hope - recognize what we share, and what we can do to make things better."

To post a comment, you must register and login.