WUFT | News and public media for north central Florida
Holocaust Documentary Kicks Off Gainesville’s 14th Jewish Film Festival
By Hannah Getman
February 24, 2025 at 1:36 PM EST
In a dimly lit theater, a small audience sat with eyes fixated on the screen before them, listening to the words of a killer. The voice of Adolf Eichmann, one of the orchestrators of the Holocaust, blared through the speakers, surrounding everyone who attended the screening of, “The Devil’s Confession: The Lost Eichmann Tapes.”
“This film is particularly meaningful,” said Ken Wald, a retired University of Florida professor and attendee of the screening. “My parents were Holocaust survivors, and Eichmann, of course, was the person who implemented the final solution.”
Gainesville’s 14th Annual Jewish Film Festival began with the showing of this film on Sunday night at the Hippodrome State Theatre. In total, the festival features 13 films and runs through March 18.
The festival displays an array of movies, from rom-coms to documentaries. The Bud Shorstein Center for Jewish Studies at UF organized it.
“This is a university-sponsored festival, so intellectual caliber trumps entertaining value,” said Jack Kugelmass, a UF professor. “At the same time, the latter cannot be dismissed. With this number of films, we do want viewers to come back for more.”
Kugelmass, the Melton Legislative Professor of Jewish Studies and a professor of anthropology, picks which films are shown. He began making selections for this year’s festival over the summer by attending the Jerusalem Film Festival, he said.
Kugelmass not only works to have a variety of genres, he also tries to find films about different locations. This year, the festival features films on South America, Poland and Israel.
Each film is also followed by a discussion period where the audience can share their thoughts or ask questions about what they just saw.
Stuart Cohn, who was also at Sunday’s showing, has attended the festival in years past. He said that the post-film discussions are where he gets a deeper grasp of each movie.
“Those are very fulfilling in terms of understanding issues,” Cohn said. “Both the films and any discussion that we have afterward is really enlightening. There’s a lot of information that we don’t know.”
Those attending the first film of the festival gather outside the Hippodrome State Theatre to talk prior to the screening. Many would stay afterward to discuss what they had seen. (Hannah Getman/WUFT News). (3261x2446, AR: 1.3331970564186426)
While the festival is a university-sponsored event, many people from around the area attend. Kugelmass said that if he had to guess, he would say that the average attendees per film ranges from around 40 to 75 people.
This is not just limited to those that identify as Jewish, according to Norman J.W. Goda, the director of the Bud Shorstein Center and Braman Professor of Holocaust Studies.
“We have had strong attendance because by no means are these films only for Jewish audiences,” he explained. “Many deal with universal themes, and they are of interest to everyone.”
Identifying as Jewish himself, Wald finds it easy to relate to these films. However, he echoed Goda’s sentiments that they can appeal to the masses.
“There is a sense of peoplehood about these films…given the family history,” Wald said. “But this film, I think, is appealing to people regardless of that connection.”
The event is a highlight of the department’s calendar every year, Goda said. He mentioned that a lot of the faculty at the center specialize in various art forms, including film.
He also emphasized the importance of events like the festival to local communities. Film, especially, is a creative way to discuss critical subjects, and Jewish filmmakers do a great job of this, Goda said.
“Jewish film festivals are generally in big cities,” he said. “So, to have such a high-quality festival in Gainesville is special to us.”
Cohn agrees that bringing these films to Gainesville is of the utmost importance. He said that some documentaries about Israel, the Middle East and the Holocaust would never be available locally if not for the annual festival. The mix of viewpoints in all these films needs to be seen, he said.
“This documentary tonight on Eichmann, I’ve never seen anything like what tonight is,” Cohn said. “We don’t see that in the first-run theaters. We don’t see it on our TV. So it’s an importance service that’s provided to the community.”
In Cohn’s opinion, informing the youth of this history is just as important as localizing it. Keeping the next generation aware of certain issues, especially in a world where many don’t read the news, is necessary, he said.
“It’s especially important for younger people, particularly since the media isn’t what it used to be,” Cohn said. “A lot of us older people remember reading newspapers. But younger people need to see these kinds of films.”
“This film is particularly meaningful,” said Ken Wald, a retired University of Florida professor and attendee of the screening. “My parents were Holocaust survivors, and Eichmann, of course, was the person who implemented the final solution.”
Gainesville’s 14th Annual Jewish Film Festival began with the showing of this film on Sunday night at the Hippodrome State Theatre. In total, the festival features 13 films and runs through March 18.
The festival displays an array of movies, from rom-coms to documentaries. The Bud Shorstein Center for Jewish Studies at UF organized it.
“This is a university-sponsored festival, so intellectual caliber trumps entertaining value,” said Jack Kugelmass, a UF professor. “At the same time, the latter cannot be dismissed. With this number of films, we do want viewers to come back for more.”
Kugelmass, the Melton Legislative Professor of Jewish Studies and a professor of anthropology, picks which films are shown. He began making selections for this year’s festival over the summer by attending the Jerusalem Film Festival, he said.
Kugelmass not only works to have a variety of genres, he also tries to find films about different locations. This year, the festival features films on South America, Poland and Israel.
Each film is also followed by a discussion period where the audience can share their thoughts or ask questions about what they just saw.
Stuart Cohn, who was also at Sunday’s showing, has attended the festival in years past. He said that the post-film discussions are where he gets a deeper grasp of each movie.
“Those are very fulfilling in terms of understanding issues,” Cohn said. “Both the films and any discussion that we have afterward is really enlightening. There’s a lot of information that we don’t know.”
Those attending the first film of the festival gather outside the Hippodrome State Theatre to talk prior to the screening. Many would stay afterward to discuss what they had seen. (Hannah Getman/WUFT News). (3261x2446, AR: 1.3331970564186426)
While the festival is a university-sponsored event, many people from around the area attend. Kugelmass said that if he had to guess, he would say that the average attendees per film ranges from around 40 to 75 people.
This is not just limited to those that identify as Jewish, according to Norman J.W. Goda, the director of the Bud Shorstein Center and Braman Professor of Holocaust Studies.
“We have had strong attendance because by no means are these films only for Jewish audiences,” he explained. “Many deal with universal themes, and they are of interest to everyone.”
Identifying as Jewish himself, Wald finds it easy to relate to these films. However, he echoed Goda’s sentiments that they can appeal to the masses.
“There is a sense of peoplehood about these films…given the family history,” Wald said. “But this film, I think, is appealing to people regardless of that connection.”
The event is a highlight of the department’s calendar every year, Goda said. He mentioned that a lot of the faculty at the center specialize in various art forms, including film.
He also emphasized the importance of events like the festival to local communities. Film, especially, is a creative way to discuss critical subjects, and Jewish filmmakers do a great job of this, Goda said.
“Jewish film festivals are generally in big cities,” he said. “So, to have such a high-quality festival in Gainesville is special to us.”
Cohn agrees that bringing these films to Gainesville is of the utmost importance. He said that some documentaries about Israel, the Middle East and the Holocaust would never be available locally if not for the annual festival. The mix of viewpoints in all these films needs to be seen, he said.
“This documentary tonight on Eichmann, I’ve never seen anything like what tonight is,” Cohn said. “We don’t see that in the first-run theaters. We don’t see it on our TV. So it’s an importance service that’s provided to the community.”
In Cohn’s opinion, informing the youth of this history is just as important as localizing it. Keeping the next generation aware of certain issues, especially in a world where many don’t read the news, is necessary, he said.
“It’s especially important for younger people, particularly since the media isn’t what it used to be,” Cohn said. “A lot of us older people remember reading newspapers. But younger people need to see these kinds of films.”