Romeo and Juliet in Yiddish
- Synopsis
- Independent low-budget feature film which transports Romeo and Juliet to Williamsburg and the warring families are from two different sects of Orthodox Jews - the Chabads and the Satmars. Laser (Weiss) is running petty scams for food and drugs with his pal Mendy (Zafir). Alienated from their families and communities, they have the thick accents of their ultra Orthodox Satmer sect, in which Yiddish is the first language. Ava (Annenberg), an emergency room nurse who is studying for a Masters in the mama loschen, loves Yiddishkeit but not the Orthodox. When she takes on the project of translating Romeo and Juliet into Yiddish, a Satmer ambulance driver recommends young toughs Laser and Mendy to assist her with the translation. But there is a problem: they have never heard of Shakespeare. As they start to "modernise" and act in the archaic play, the young men fall under its spell.
- Language
- Yiddish
- Country
- United States
- Medium
- Film
- Technical information
- Colour / Sound
- Year of release
- 08/07/2011
- Duration
- 91 mins
Credits
- Director
- Eve Annenberg
- Producer
- Eve Annenberg; Lazer Weiss
- Cinematographer
- In Young Choi
- Screenplay
- Eve Annenberg
- Music
- Joel Diamond
- Art Direction
- Tricia Peck
- Cast
Additional Details
- Production type
- Fiction Films
- Historical period
- Contemporary
- Plays
- Romeo and Juliet
- Subjects
- Drama
- Keywords
- Jewish Americans; Jews; Shakespeare, William (1564-1616); Untrained actors
Notes
- Notes
- The film was made in three months and cost $175,000. In English and Yiddish with English sub-titles.
- General
- The film stars first-time actors who left their close-knit Chasidic communities in Brooklyn. The Film is available for Download from iTunes at: http://apple.co/2wmP5po
- History
- The film had its American premiere on 16 January 2011 at the 20th New York Jewish Film Festival and its world premiere at the Berlin Jewish Film Festival.
- Awards
- Gerhardt Klein Audience Award, Berlin Jewish Film Festival
- Reviews
- Daily Variety (Tuesday July 12, 2011)
Online Availability
- Online URL
- http://bit.ly/2vcwGxf
- Online format
- Download
Production Company
- Name
Vilna City Films
Distributor (Sale)
- Name
Nancy Fishman Film Releasing
- nancy&fishmanfilm.com
- Web
- http://nancyfishmanfilmreleasing.com External site opens in new window
- Phone
- +1 510 2900 255
- Address
- 610 16th Street, Suite 507B
Oakland
CA 94612
USA
How to cite this record
Shakespeare, "Romeo and Juliet in Yiddish". https://learningonscreen.ac.uk/shakespeare/search/index.php/title/av73117 (Accessed 20 Sep 2024)