Special Screening at Tel Aviv Cinematheque

April 28, 2008 – Eyes Wide Open, a documentary film that chronicles the preconceptions and revelations of American Jews as they visit Israel will be screened at the Tel Aviv Cinematheque on May 2, 2008, at 2:00 pm. A panel discussion will follow the screening (see details below). Directed by veteran Jerusalem filmmaker Paula Weiman-Kelman, produced by former Wall Street financier Jon Lopatin and written by award-winning journalist Stuart Schoffman, Eyes Wide Open is an official selection of the 28th San Francisco Jewish Film Festival that will open July 24th.

Given recent statistics that show only 48% of non-Orthodox Jews under the age of 35 agree that “Israel’s destruction would be a personal tragedy,” and just 54% are “comfortable with the idea of a Jewish State” (2007 study commissioned by The Andrea and Charles Bronfman Philanthropies), Eyes Wide Open candidly reveals the emotional challenge Israel poses for many American Jews today. The panel discussion at the Tel Aviv Cinematheque will provide an Israeli perspective to this complex conversation.

Says Weiman-Kelman: “I hope this film will be a springboard for honest and open discussions about the emotional and communal ties that bind the American Jewish community to Israel today. I hope that it will get people talking, and that it will let them know that no real relationship to Israel can be simple.”

Once You Visit Israel, Everything Looks Different