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Comedic Documentary Follows Jewish Performers Learning About Jewish Culture in Stockholm
Cover art for “Swedishkayt: YidLife Crisis in Stockholm.” Photo: Provided
The US-based distribution company Menemsha Films has acquired worldwide rights, exclusive of Scandinavia, to a comedic documentary film from Canadian filmmakers and award-winning comedy duo Jamie Elman and Eli Batalion, The Algemeiner has learned.
The film, titled “Swedishkayt: YidLife Crisis in Stockholm,” follows the performers from Montreal as they travel around Stockholm, Sweden, and learn about Jewish identity and culture. “Through meshugenah encounters and eye-opening revelations, these two (gefilte) fish out of water explore 250 years of Swedish Jewish culture, from the earliest immigrants to today’s Yiddish renaissance, including discovering how Yiddish came to be a protected government-recognized language in Sweden,” according to a synopsis of the film provided by Menemsha Films. “Along the way, they dive into a cultural revival that is as unexpected as it is joyous.”
Menemsha Films will premiere “Swedishkayt” at international film festivals next year, starting with its world premiere at the Miami Jewish Film Festival in January, followed by a theatrical release in North America.
“When we first discovered that, of all places, Sweden is the new mecca of Yiddish language and culture, we knew we had to share this crazy secret with the rest of the world,” said Elman and Batalion. “We were excited to dip into the Yiddish scene in Stockholm for this film, and are delighted to work with the mensches at Menemsha Films, who have proven their ability time and time again to take Jewish
projects to wide audiences.”
Batalion and Elman co-created the first Yiddish-language sitcom “YidLife Crisis,” an award-winning web series that explores religious and cultural Jewish life in the modern world. The show has featured celebrity guest appearances by Mayim Bialik and Howie Mandel. It has amassed over 4 million online views and led to Battalion and Elman having sold-out live performances across North America and Europe.
“We have been huge fans of YidLife Crisis for many years, and it is our privilege to bring these comedy icons to a larger audience around the world,” said Neil Friedman, founder and president of Menemsha Films, in a joint statement with Menemsha Films Executive Vice President Heidi Oshin.
The comedic duo has released previous projects like “Swedishkayt” that chronicle their travels and exploration of Jewish identity, including the “Global Shtetl” series, “Narishkayt: YidLife Crisis in Krakow,” and “Chewdaism: A Taste of Montreal.” Together, they have over 25 years of credits across television, theater, music, and film, including “Mad Men” and “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” They have written, directed, and produced short and feature films that have appeared at major film festivals including Sundance, Toronto, Berlin, and SXSW.
Watch the trailer for “Swedishkayt: YidLife Crisis in Stockholm” below.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.