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An interview with the Los Angeles Jewish Film Festival´s Director Hilary Helstein on celebrating 20 years and changing a community one film at a time... March 17, 2025
LAJFF Opening with legendary actor Ed Asner, Ruby Modine, Hilary Helstein & actor Matthew Modine
By Bessy ADUT
I am excited to share this article about the Los Angeles Jewish Film Festival. I had a chance to attend the Los Angeles Jewish Film Festival and I was very impressed by the filmmakers and the film events I have experienced. I’ve been wanting to interview the Los Angeles Jewish Film Festival’s Executive Director, Hilary Helstein for a while. The upcoming festival is celebrating 20 years and is a milestone for Ms. Helstein, so it is our special congratulations to the festival!
I had the chance to ask some questions and get more information about the history of the festival that I am happy to share with our ̃alom readers.
Ms. Hilary, why did you create the Los Angeles Jewish Film Festival? How much has it grown since it began and what kind of influence does it have now?
In 2006, we had a vision to create something innovative, artistic, and educational in the Jewish community and to engage and unite the community in a unique and cultural cinematic and immersive experience, something we didn’t have. Our mission was to present a broad range of programming, curated with Jewish-content films from all over the world, accompanied by artists and filmmakers, to illuminate and educate people of all backgrounds, races, religions, ages, and abilities. Our goal was to engage in dialogue, advocate against racism and antisemitism, and encourage tolerance, peace, and a deeper understanding of Jewish culture and a common sense of humanity.
That vision has now blossomed into an LA institution. Embarking on our 20th festival, we see the impact we have made.
We open people's minds to new ideas and stories, educate them in historical and current events and take them beyond what they understand of the world. We present documentaries that open eyes, dramas that open hearts, and help them laugh when times are tough.
Entertainment and cinema have been the common thread that carries us through challenging times, sharing the love of movies with each other.
Director Sal Litvak, actor Mark Feuerstein with Hilary Helstein
LAJFF creates a sense of community when they deeply need togetherness, and this unity is a bond that makes us stronger. Our films are new and fresh, often presenting world premieres with burgeoning talent and A-list celebrity participation, making it a much anticipated destination. Our programs open up critical conversations and build bridges of understanding with our diverse audiences.
The Festival started as a locally-based initiative as we recognized there were culturally underserved districts surrounding the highly populated areas outside of downtown Los Angeles such as the San Fernando and Conejo valleys. We soon realized that Los Angeles' westside neighborhoods also craved quality “Jewish” content. Thereafter, we rapidly expanded into a broader city-wide community building organization, offering Jews and non-Jews alike an opportunity to engage in thought-provoking discourses and meet emerging filmmakers, scholars and celebrities while having a first look at the latest films, all dealing with Jewish values, tradition, history and culture.
Over the years, we expanded to venues all over LA, giving those communities the opportunity to participate. Programs were developed with support from local organizational partners including the Anti-Defamation League, Jewish Federation, Museum of Tolerance, and others, as well as LA City Councilmembers and the International Consular Corps.
Influencer Montana Tucker, Rap Star Matisyahu, Comedian Elon Gold
We saw that sharing stories through film and the work of putting on the festival brought people together to build and experience something meaningful. The films allowed us to see aspects of our community that might not always be obvious.
LAJFF made award presentations and the first two were made to legendary “Jewish” pioneers: Joan Rivers and Theodore Bikel. In more recent years we honored Hollywood icons, Carl Reiner, Ed Asner, and Peter Bogdanovich in tribute to Carl Laemmle, the Jewish founder of Universal Studios, who fled Germany. LAJFF works closely with the studios and hosted film premieres such as the Oscar-winning, “Son of Saul”, David Cronenberg’s “A Dangerous Method”, and most recently, “A Real Pain”, “Between the Temples,” with Q&As with Carol Kane, and the film, “Lee” with Kate Winslet! We hosted award-winning filmmakers including Academy Award Winner, Guy Nattiv, director of “Golda”, and French activist/writer-director, Bernard-Henri Lévy.
Hilary Helstein, Hershey Felder, actress Helen Mirren and director Taylor Hackford
Special guests at LAJFF include Jon Voight, Helen Mirren, Elliot Gould, Larry King, Diane Warren, Matthew Modine, Mark Feuerstein, Elon Gold, Christof Waltz, Garry Marshall, Lainie Kazan, Ed Begley Jr., Melissa Manchester, David Oyelowo, Patrick Duffy, Maximilian Schell, Phil Rosenthal and the list goes on!
In 2021 we established our own non-profit organization, JFilmLA, in order to expand the scope and diversity of our films. In the early stages of the COVID pandemic we hosted online screenings and Q&As to accommodate our isolated audience. We chose films and speakers that reached and brought together a global community online, including viewers and participants from Europe, Australia, South Africa, and Israel. We hosted free Zoom webinars with artists and scholars including German director Maria Schrader (Unorthodox, She Said), US Senator Cory Booker, Israeli Ambassador to the US, Michael Herzog, and talent like Tovah Feldshuh and Israeli actress, Shira Haas.
Hilary and actress Tovah Feldshuh
In the past two years we returned to an in-person festival to an audience who was ready to engage in on-site events again. Over 1200 attendees took part at each of the opening night programs at the 2023 and 2024 festivals. In 2023, we honored the legendary icon, Mel Brooks with the World Premiere of Remembering Gene Wilder (the film subsequently soared to #2 on Netflix). It brought the festival to new heights. We introduced musical artists like Hershey Felder and the renowned composer Charles Fox (wrote the hit song, “Killing Me Softly” and TV theme songs like “Happy Days” and “ The Love Boat”), both artists performed on piano, which was an amazing and exclusive experience for our audience.
With antisemitism on the rise, we showed films in the 2024 festival line-up that offered a way to engage in discussions of fighting antisemitism through the use of film, with a theme of “modern Jewish resistance fighters.” We premiered a documentary about the events of October 7th and the Nova Music Festival, featuring rap star Matisyahu, who participated in a Q&A and brought in many young people and influencers.
I also would like to add that recently Hilary Helstein was honored by the The City of Los Angeles and the Los Angeles City Council for her work not only as the festival director but as an award-winning filmmaker, with an Award of Distinction. The citation recognizes her powerful film, “As Seen Through These Eyes,” screened earlier this year, as well as her unwavering passion and commitment to Holocaust remembrance and to preserving history through film. The honor also acknowledges her outstanding contributions to the city's cultural excellence through the Los Angeles Jewish Film Festival and the profound impact it has on the greater Los Angeles community.
She sent her gratitude to Councilmember Bob Blumenfield and Chief of Staff, John Popoch.
Pictured here (L to R) - Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky, Hilary Helstein, and Councilmember Bob Blumenfield honoring Hilary Helstein's work as a filmmaker and Los Angeles Jewish Film Festival Director 
Councilmember Bob Blumenfield honoring Hilary Helstein
To get some insight about last year's festival: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghy7SEdAN5Y&t=1s
Roz Wolf, publicist for LAJFF - RozWolf.com
I also had an opportunity to ask publicist Roz Wolf, the publicist for LAJFF about her thoughts and work with the festival. She said:
"I have been acting as the Public Relations manager for the Los Angeles Jewish Film Festival since 2009. Over the years, I have seen exponential growth in many ways but specifically, the growth in media recognition which has been tremendous. Due to the uniqueness of the curated programs that Hilary Helstein has spearheaded we constantly garner attention from major news organizations. Since I started working with the festival we have been able to bring in A-list celebrity attendees to our opening nights galas and other film programs during the festival week which makes our local Los Angeles events that much more important. We have gained media attention from a high level of national and international press including Parade Magazine, People Magazine, The Los Angeles Times and Jerusalem Post to name a few. That's how important and culturally relevant this festival has become."
It was a pleasure to make this article on the Los Angeles Jewish Film Festival. Thank you for reading. Looking forward to attending the next festival this year and to celebrating with them in person soon.
A huge shoutout and gratitude for the work that they do to make an impact on the community and their contribution to making the world a better place! 
*All photography - Courtesy of LA Jewish Film Festival
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