Events
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Mark the start of your new year with Reboot and the JCCSF Reset your system with our modern spin on a 600-year-old Rosh Hashanah ritual called tashlich. This custom of ridding ourselves of all our bad vuggum (karma) from the previous year and getting a fresh start for the new one is traditionally enacted by tossing crumbs (we now use birdseed to be more eco-conscious) into the ocean. Bring a shofar, if you have one, to blow along with some of San Francisco’s finest players from the Irish Pipers Band, and the Ministers of Sound of the Saint John Will-I-Am Coltrane African Orthodox Church. Thursday, October 3, 5 p.m. – 7 p.m. at Crissy Field East Beach in San Francisco. Find out more here and RSVP here.
We’ve Been Here Before will be screened at the 44th annual San Francisco Jewish Film Festival in August as a part of the Reality Bites: Documentary Shorts program. The film connects the dots between mass shootings, the rise in anti-semitism, and the rise in hate violence in America in a fresh light. It follows the work of Eric Ward, a renowned expert on the relationship between authoritarian movements, hate violence, and preserving inclusive democracy. Ward was in the punk rock subculture when neo-Nazi’s infiltrated the punk scene in the 1980’s and 90’s. The short documentary film, by Jacob Kornbluth and a part of Reboot Studios’ latest round of funding, is a deep dive into the punk subculture that fought back against White Nationalists and neo-Nazis, and the lessons they have to share with the larger struggle against hate not just in America, but the world. Use code: REBOOT44 for a 10% discount on all tickets and passes. Learn more and get tickets here.
Filmed over 21 years, Sabbath Queen follows Rabbi Amichai Lau Lavie’s epic journey as the dynastic heir of 38 generations of Orthodox rabbis who rejects his traditional destiny and becomes a drag-queen rebel, a queer father, and the founder of Lab/Shul – an everybody-friendly, God-optional, artist-driven, pop-up experimental congregation in New York! Making its west coast premiere, the film will screen twice and there will be a special Soul Spa program as a part of the 44th annual San Francisco Jewish Film Festival this July. Sabbath Queen, supported with funding from Reboot and executive produced by Adrian Salpeter, captures director Sandi DuBowski and Amichai Lau-Lavie (all Reboot Network members) on a lifelong and cinematic quest to creatively and radically reinvent religion, ritual, and love for a challenging, rapidly changing 21st century. Use code: REBOOT44 for a 10% discount on all tickets and passes. Learn more and get tickets here.
Back on the big screen after 100+ years, Breaking Home Ties was discovered in a Berlin archive and lovingly rescued and restored to its original glory by The National Center for Jewish Film (NCJF). Presented in collaboration with Reboot Studios and NCJF, the screening at the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival will feature live musical accompaniment led by 12-time Grammy-nominated musician Steve Berlin of Los Lobos and award-winning musicians Scott Amendola, Gretchen Gonzales, and Adam Dorn. The California premiere of Breaking Home Ties will be an unforgettable experience for film enthusiasts and music lovers alike. Use code: REBOOT44 for a 10% discount on all tickets and passes. Learn more and get tickets here.
We Should Eat will make it’s world premiere at the 44th annual San Francisco Jewish Film Festival as a part of the Oys and Joys: Narrative Shorts collection. The short film humorously touches on age-old familial irritations with Jewish mothers, the intricacies of raising pre-teen daughters, existential dread and of course, the perpetual struggle to figure out what to order for dinner. The film stars Alysia Reiner (Orange Is the New Black), Tovah Feldshuh (Crazy Ex-Girlfriend), Jackie Hoffman (Only Murders in the Building), Joel de la Fuente (Walking Dead), Bob Ari (Law and Order SVU) and Lexi Perkel (Sack Lunch Bunch). Written and directed by Shaina Feinberg. Use code: REBOOT44 for a 10% discount on all tickets and passes. Learn more and get tickets here.
Join Rabbi Shoshanah Conover and guest speaker, Rebecca Soffer, for a candid, warm, and even humorous conversation exploring Rebecca’s book, “The Modern Loss Handbook,” and the global movement to destigmatize the universal experience of grief while encouraging people to find meaning and live richly. “The Modern Loss Handbook” offers a welcoming space in which to grow thoughts and feelings as they evolve and create a personal roadmap toward resilience. With warmth, wit and disarming humor, Rebecca and the rabbis will unpack the wisdom of the book and discuss how the long arc of loss can be woven into our lives in a way that is practical, creative, comforting, provoking, and, finally, hopeful. Find more info and RSVP here.
Join Rabbi Jennifer Kaluzny, Rabbi Michael Moskowitz and guest speaker, Rebecca Soffer, on April 9, 2024 for a candid, warm, and even humorous conversation exploring Rebecca’s book, “The Modern Loss Handbook,” and the global movement to destigmatize the universal experience of grief while encouraging people to find meaning and live richly.
“The Modern Loss Handbook” offers a welcoming space in which to grow thoughts and feelings as they evolve and create a personal roadmap toward resilience. With warmth, wit and disarming humor, Rebecca and the rabbis will unpack the wisdom of the book and discuss how the long arc of loss can be woven into our lives in a way that is practical, creative, comforting, provoking, and, finally, hopeful. This event is intended for adults and will include a conversation with Rebecca Soffer and the rabbis, followed by strolling refreshments and book signing. Learn more and get tickets here
We’ve Been Here Before: What the Punk Scene Can Teach Us About White Supremacy produced with Reboot Studios, is a deep dive into the punk subculture that fought back against White Nationalists and neo-Nazis, and the lessons they have to share with those fighting for an inclusive democracy today. This short documentary connects the dots between mass shootings, antisemitism, and the rise of hate violence in America by following Eric Ward, an expert on the relationship between authoritarian movements and hate violence who first encountered these forces as an anti-racist skinhead in the punk rock subculture.
Join us for a conversation with Ward, filmmaker Jacob Kornbluth, anti-hate skinhead Dion Garcia, musician Karina Deniké, punk and sound effects artist Ronni Brown, and anti-racist Crystal Magee for a personal and strategic discussion about the role of subcultures in the larger struggle against hate, moderated by journalist and professor Mark Danner. Reception with food and drinks to follow, featuring local vinyl DJs spinning vintage punk, soul, and reggae. More details and tickets can be found here.
Discover the vibrant and transformative music scene that defined San Francisco from the late 1980s–2000s with photographer Jay Blakesberg and Noise Pop co-founder and Reboot Network member Jordan Kurland. Presenting iconic images and trading insider stories of the city’s music history, Blakesberg and Kurland will revisit memorable concerts and musical moments, from legendary outdoor performances and festivals to shows at beloved lost music venues. Join Reboot with the CJM and Noise Pop to celebrate San Francisco’s creative spirit, unique musical identity, and electrifying history. Learn more and RSVP.
Back on the big screen after 100+ years, the only surviving print of Breaking Home Ties will be shown at the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival with the world premiere of a new original score produced by Reboot Studios with legendary artists Steve Berlin, Mocean Worker, Scott Amendola and more! Breaking Home Ties, released for general audiences in 1922, was directed by Jewish filmmakers Frank N. Seltzer and George K. Rowlands with the express purpose of countering escalating antisemitism in the US. Featuring sympathetic Jewish lead characters, the film is a rare example from early cinema that explicitly depicts Jewish life and rituals. Long thought lost, the world’s only surviving print of Breaking Home Ties was rescued, restored and re-released by The National Center for Jewish Film. The new recorded score will premiere with the film on February 15, 2024 at the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival. Details and more here.
“While this project has been in the works for the past year, the timing feels particularly poignant. We need many more women leaders and feminist perspectives in the world right now,” says artist and Reboot Network member Tiffany Shlain, whose sculpture DENDROFEMONOLOGY: A Feminist History Tree Ring will be installed on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. presented by the National Women’s History Museum. Learn more here.
Reboot, with Detroit Public Theatre and Detroit Public Television, invites you for a pre-Halloween event to celebrate the most famous Jewish monster, the Golem, its history and contemporary lessons, at a festival of music, film, conversation and art in Detroit. This interactive experience on October 30, 2023, features Adam Mansbach, the #1 New York Times bestselling author whose latest novel The Golem of Brooklyn was just released this fall, and Dr. Justin Sledge, a Detroit-based professor of Ethics, Religion, and Social-Political Philosophy whose research has an emphasis on Jewish esotericism and the occult. In a conversation moderated by Angelique Power, president & CEO of The Skillman Foundation, the two will discuss the historical and contemporary connection between the legend of the golem and Jewish links between the supernatural, creativity and tikkun olam (repairing the world). The evening will also feature the release of Reboot’s new vinyl record The Golem and Detroit artists Oliva Guterson and Faina Lerman manifesting Jewish monsters with a live painting installation, along with a new video by Lynne Avadenka, along with film screenings, music and more. Details and tickets here. This event will be recorded and available to stream following the program. Subscribe to Reboot’s YouTube channel for updates.
In their new film, We’ve Been Here Before, Emmy-winning filmmaker Jacob Kornbluth and civil rights strategist Eric K. Ward explore the role of the punk subculture in fighting back against white nationalists and neo-Nazis. Join Reboot Ideas on Oct. 19, 2023 at the Holocaust Museum LA for a screening and conversation about the lessons they have to share about the larger struggle against hate, not just in America, but the world. Kornbluth and Ward will be joined by Molly Neuman (Downtown Music Holdings) in a conversation moderated by Jessica Yellin (News Not Noise). The short documentary by Kornbluth is a part of Reboot Studios’ latest round of funding investments. Learn more about the film here. The conversation will be available to stream following the program. Subscribe to Reboot’s YouTube channel for updates.
Reboot Rabbinical Educator Kendell Pinkney sat down with his friend and colleague, Tony-winning actor Ari’el Stachel to discuss the “intersections of race, mental health, and survival” from the stage of Stachel’s new show at Berkeley Rep, Out of Character. The program was held on July 12 following the performance of Out of Character at Berkeley Rep and will be available to stream shortly. Hosted by Reboot in partnership with Berkeley Rep and The Workshop with support from the Jewish Community Federation and Endowment Fund.