Kick off NJ Jewish Film Fest with Feb. 16 screening at JCC

WEST ORANGE, NJ — As a prelude to the 19th annual New Jersey Jewish Film Festival, which will run from March 27 through April 7, “An Act of Defiance” will screened Saturday, Feb. 16, at 8 p.m. in the Maurice Levin Theater at the JCC MetroWest, 760 Northfield Ave. in West Orange.

In this historical drama directed by Jean van de Velde, 10 political activists — including Nelson Mandela and his inner circle of black and Jewish supporters — face a possible death sentence for conspiracy to commit sabotage after they are arrested by the apartheid South African government during a raid in the town of Rivonia during the summer of 1963. Attorney Bram Fischer, played by Peter Paul Muller, risks his career and freedom to defend these men, attempting to hide the fact that he, too, frequently convened on the farm where they were arrested.

For more information and to purchase tickets, call 973-530-3417 or visit www.jccmetrowest/org/njjff.

  JCC