TCC participates in 2015 Festival of Jewish Film

Tidewater Community College will take part in the 2015 Festival of Jewish Film with a screening of “Above and Beyond: The Birth of the Israeli Air Force” on Jan 20 from 12:30 to 2 p.m. at the TCC Roper Performing Arts Center on the Norfolk Campus.

The 22nd Annual Festival of Jewish Film is presented by the Simon Family Jewish Community Center in Norfolk.

“Above and Beyond” will be presented by TCC’s Office for Intercultural Learning and Center for Military and Veterans Education. A panel discussion will follow the film, and the community is invited to attend.

Produced by Nancy Spielberg, the documentary chronicles the true story of the mostly American pilots who volunteered to fight for Israel during the War of Independence in 1948. It combines extraordinary archival footage and interviews with scholars, survivors and their descendants.

Despite antiquated planes and shoddy equipment, these pilots exercised enough skill and trickery to persuade the invaders that their small squadron posed a far bigger threat than it really did, helping turn the tide of the war. These pilots ultimately laid the foundation for the Israeli Air Force.

TCC’s Roper Center is also screening “50 Children: The Rescue Mission of Mr. and Mrs. Kraus” on Jan. 18, “Cupcakes” on Jan 25, and “The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz” on Jan. 25, which includes a reception catered by TCC culinary students.

TCC students are admitted free to all Roper showings by presenting their valid student ID.