The inaugural Jewish Film Festival Zagreb was held in 2007. The event was licensed and supported by the UK International Jewish Film Festival. The JFF Zagreb is currently organized by an NGO of the same name. Its honorary director is Branko Lustig, a Croatian film producer best known for winning two Academy Awards, for Schindler’s List and Gladiator. As a child, Lustig was imprisoned for two years in Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen.
The festival line-up comprises feature-length, short, documentary and animated films from different countries, including exclusive premieres and director’s screenings. The program of the first festival featured only 12 films, but it has expanded considerably over the years. Today, the Festival of Tolerance screens over 80 entries every year. It focuses on films dedicated to the Holocaust or to problems such as antisemitism, racism, ageism, xenophobia, homophobia, hate speech and discrimination.
Along with film screenings, the program of the Festival of Tolerance includes the so-called Educational Mornings (an educational program about the Holocaust for students of different age groups), music events, exhibitions, discussions, a film market, and a program for up-and-coming filmmakers.
Over the years, the JFF Zagreb have welcomed many notable guests from the film industry, including A-list stars. Past guests have included film directors Steven Spielberg, Stefan Ruzowitzky, Volker Schlöndorff, and István Szabó, actors Liam Neeson, Stellan Skarsgård, Ralph Fiennes and Rade Šerbedžija, and others.
Most festival events are held at Cinema Europa and Tuškanac Cinema in Zagreb. Cinema Europa is one of the city’s oldest cinemas. Special screenings are organized in other Central European cities, including Belgrade, Cetinje, Ljubljana, Rijeka, Sarajevo, and Vienna.
In 2021, the event was held online due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Photo: festivaloftolerance.com
