Jewish Film Institute: the Bay Area premiere of “Among Neighbors”

The Bay Area Premiere of Yoav Potash’s timely documentary Among Neighbors took place on Tuesday, February 18 in San Francisco. The premiere was a collaboration between the Jewish Film Institute (JFI) and SF IndieFest, supported by the Koret Foundation.

The film was selected as the Opening Night of JFI’s 12th annual WinterFest and Closing Night of the 27th annual SF IndieFest. The screening marked a hometown celebration for Potash and his latest film, which was the recipient of the JFI Completion Grants Envision Award. The award goes to films that tell complex stories and envision a world free of prejudice and hate. 

A sold-out audience of Jewish community leaders and filmgoers attended the screening and Q&A at the Vogue Theater. Lowell Bergman moderated a Q&A following the film with Potash, and producers Dr. Anita Friedman and Aaron Tartakovsky. The screening was followed by an intimate reception nearby at the Jewish Community Center of San Francisco. 

Using beautiful hand-drawn animation to bring the past to life, Among Neighbors tells the story of a small, rural town where the longstanding peace between Jewish and Polish neighbors was shattered by World War II. The screening and Q&A posed urgent questions about Holocaust remembrance, education, and tolerance in today’s fraught and polarized times.