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Tribeca Film Festival Begins in NY, Featuring Israeli and Jewish-Themed Documentaries, Feature Films
A promotional photo for “Dead Language.” Photo: Tribeca Film Festival
The 2025 Tribeca Film Festival begins this week in New York City’s lower Manhattan and features a lineup of Jewish and Israel-related films, including the world premiere of several films and the North American premiere of a documentary about a former Hamas hostage.
“Holding Liat” follows the parents of Israeli-American dual citizen Liat Beinin Atzili, who was kidnapped by Hamas-led terrorists from Kibbutz Nir Oz in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, especially her father, as he advocates in the US for her release and safe return home. Atzili was released in the first Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal in late 2023. Her husband, Aviv Atzili, was killed on Oct. 7 and his body is still being held in Gaza. The film, which won the top documentary prize at the Berlin International Film Festival earlier this year, was directed by Brandon Kramer and co-produced by Darren Aronofsky. “Holding Liat” will have its North American premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 9, with additional screenings on June 10-12.
The only Israeli feature film being screened at Tribeca is “Dead Language” by Michal Brezis and Oded Binnun, which is an expanded version of their Oscar-nominated short film “Aya.” The film is about a woman who is waiting at the airport for her husband but impulsively decides to pick up a stranger instead and pretends to be his chauffeur. It will be screened as part of Tribeca’s Viewpoints section, which last year awarded Tom Nesher’s “Come Closer,” an Israeli film that later won the Ophir Award for best feature film. “Dead Language” is making its world premiere at Tribeca on June 9, with additional screenings on June 10 and June 12.
Also making its world premiere at Tribeca is the documentary “Barbara Walters: Tell Me Everything,” about the life and career of the Jewish television personality, iconic interviewer, and news host who died in 2022 at the age 92. The former co-host of “The Today Show” was the first woman to host an American network evening news program and went on to co-create “The View.” The documentary, directed by Jackie Jesko, features commentary about Walters from her colleagues, friends, and some of the subjects she interviewed. “Barbara Walters: Tell Me Everything” will make its world premiere at Tribeca on June 12, with further screenings on June 13 and June 15.
Comedian, actor, and podcast host Marc Maron will participate in a discussion on stage following Tribeca’s New York premiere of “Are We Good?” a documentary about his everyday life, career, and the sudden loss of his partner, filmmaker Lynn Shelton. The film is directed by Steven Feinartz and premieres June 14, with an additional screening on June 15.
The late, legendary Jewish performance artist Andy Kaufman is the subject of another documentary being screened at Tribeca, titled “Andy Kaufman Is Me.” Directed by Clay Tweel, the film features marionette puppetry, Kaufman’s never-before-heard audio diaries, and his semi-autobiographical, unfinished novel. The film festival described the documentary as a “wildly entertaining” film and “a trippy, funny, and deeply personal ride through the mind of a man who never played by the rules — and never wanted to.” The film also features interviews with his siblings, Michael and Carol Kaufman, as well as David Letterman, Carol Kane, Tim Heidecker, and others. Kaufman died of lung cancer in 1984 at the age of 35. “Andy Kaufman Is Me” will have its world premiere at Tribeca on June 6 and there will be additional screenings on June 7 and June 12.
Making its New York premiere at Tribeca is “Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore.” Filmmaker, actress, and writer Shoshannah Stern’s debut documentary spotlights the life of influential Jewish deaf actor Marlee Matlin, who became an Oscar winner in 1987 at the age of 19 for her performance in “Children of a Lesser God.” Her other film credits include “CODA,” which won an Oscar in 2021 for best picture and garnered Matlin a Screen Actors Guild award. “Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore” will premiere as part of the Tribeca Film Festival on June 9 with additional screenings on June 11 and 12.
The Tribeca Film Festival runs from June 4-15. It was created by Jane Rosenthal, Robert De Niro, and Craig Hatkoff to help revive lower Manhattan following the 9/11 terrorist attack.
The post Tribeca Film Festival Begins in NY, Featuring Israeli and Jewish-Themed Documentaries, Feature Films first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Israel Readies for a Nationwide Strike on Sunday
Demonstrators hold signs and pictures of hostages, as relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages kidnapped during the Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas protest demanding the release of all hostages in Tel Aviv, Israel, Feb. 13, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Itai Ron
i24 News – The families of Israeli hostages held in Gaza are calling on for a general strike to be held on Sunday in an effort to compel the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to agree to a deal with Hamas for the release of their loved ones and a ceasefire. According to Israeli officials, 50 hostages now remain in Gaza, of whom 20 are believed to be alive.
The October 7 Council and other groups representing bereaved families of hostages and soldiers who fell since the start of the war declared they were “shutting down the country to save the soldiers and the hostages.”
While many businesses said they would join the strike, Israel’s largest labor federation, the Histadrut, has declined to participate.
Some of the country’s top educational institutions, including the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Tel Aviv University, declared their support for the strike.
“We, the members of the university’s leadership, deans, and department heads, hereby announce that on Sunday, each and every one of us will participate in a personal strike as a profound expression of solidarity with the hostage families,” the Hebrew University’s deal wrote to students.
The day will begin at 6:29 AM, to commemorate the start of the October 7 attack, with the first installation at Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square in Tel Aviv. Further demonstrations are planned at dozens of traffic intersections.
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Netanyahu ‘Has Become a Problem,’Says Danish PM as She Calls for Russia-Style Sanctions Against Israel
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to the press on Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, July 8, 2025. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein
i24 News – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has become a “problem,” his Danish counterpart Mette Frederiksen said Saturday, adding she would try to put pressure on Israel over the Gaza war.
“Netanyahu is now a problem in himself,” Frederiksen told Danish media, adding that the Israeli government is going “too far” and lashing out at the “absolutely appalling and catastrophic” humanitarian situation in Gaza and announced new homes in the West Bank.
“We are one of the countries that wants to increase pressure on Israel, but we have not yet obtained the support of EU members,” she said, specifying she referred to “political pressure, sanctions, whether against settlers, ministers, or even Israel as a whole.”
“We are not ruling anything out in advance. Just as with Russia, we are designing the sanctions to target where we believe they will have the greatest effect.”
The devastating war in Gaza began almost two years ago, with an incursion into Israel of thousands of Palestinian armed jihadists, who perpetrated the deadliest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.
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As Alaska Summit Ends With No Apparent Progress, Zelensky to Meet Trump on Monday
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks at the press conference after the opening session of Crimea Platform conference in Kyiv, Ukraine, 23 August 2023. The Crimea Platform – is an international consultation and coordination format initiated by Ukraine. OLEG PETRASYUK/Pool via REUTERS
i24 News – After US President Donald Trump hailed the “great progress” made during a meeting with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday, Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky announced that he was set to meet Trump on Monday at the White House.
“There were many, many points that we agreed on, most of them, I would say, a couple of big ones that we haven’t quite gotten there, but we’ve made some headway,” Trump told reporters during a joint press conference after the meeting.
Many observers noted, however, that the subsequent press conference was a relatively muted affair compared to the pomp and circumstance of the red carpet welcome, and the summit produced no tangible progress.
Trump and Putin spoke briefly, with neither taking questions, and offered general statements about an “understanding” and “progress.”
Putin, who spoke first, agreed with Trump’s long-repeated assertion that Russia never would have invaded Ukraine in 2022 had Trump been president instead of Democrat Joe Biden.
Trump said “many points were agreed to” and that “just a very few” issues were left to resolve, offering no specifics and making no reference to the ceasefire he’s been seeking.