Margaret Mead Film Festival Tribute: Program II

The Last Marrannos (Stan Neumann, Frederic Brenner, 1989). In Portugal, a small community of Jews clings to its culture despite centuries of oppression. Descendents of Jews who hid their religion during the Inquisition and thus were not expelled, they continue to practice Judaism in secret. Indeed, for some, the roots of the family traditions they have taken for granted for generations are a mystery. (65 mins, Color, 35mm, Print from Original Cinema) Miss Saareema (Mark Soosaar, Estonia, 1989). Mark Soosaar's portraits of his native Estonia are filled with humanity, wry observations and virtuoso filmmaking technique. (Soosaar was the subject of a tribute at the Telluride Festival and at PFA in 1988.) Miss Saareema gleaned this one-line description in the Mead Festival catalog: "So, whatever happened to Estonia's 1931 beauty queen?" We can guess that the answer is, "A lot!", and we suspect that any further description would be in excess. (50 mins, Color, 35mm, Print from The Museum of Modern Art)

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