KLEZMER JAM SESSION
Finnish Klezmer Association will arrange a jam session
on Saturday, October 18, 2025, from 6 PM to 9 PM
at ”Heritage Café” (Fredrikinkatu 61, Helsinki)
Welcome to listen klezmer music by ”Helsinki Klezmer Kapelye”
— or bring your instrument and join in to play with the other klezmorim!
Free entrance.
Jewish Silent Film Festival
Organized by the Finnish Klezmer Association (Suomen Klezmer -yhdistys ry)
Venue: Kino Engel (Sofiankatu 4, Helsinki)
Dates: November 8–9, 2025
The Jewish Silent Film Festival presents five silent films produced between 1919 and 1923, accompanied by live music performed by the Helsinki Klezmer Kapelye. Age limit: 16+. Tickets are available one hour before each screening at the door and in advance at: https://klezmeryhdistys.tapahtumiin.fi/fi/
On Saturday, November 8, the films East and West and Das Alte Gesetz (The Ancient Law) will be screened. These works portray the traditional life and social position of Jewish communities in Central and Eastern Europe, exploring the tensions between tradition and modernity.
On Sunday, November 9, three films directed by Mauritz Stiller will be presented. Stiller was one of the most significant figures in Finnish and Swedish film history, often regarded as the father of Swedish silent cinema and the only Finnish-born filmmaker to have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He is also remembered as the discoverer of Greta Garbo. In 2025, director Klaus Härö’s new film Never Alone will premiere, depicting the dark years of the Second World War from the perspective of Mauritz’s brother, Abraham Stiller.
Before the screenings on Sunday, November 9 at 14:00, a panel discussion will be held on Mauritz Stiller’s life and work. The discussion will feature Dr. Simo Muir and Rony Smolar, author of Uncle Stiller and nephew of Mauritz and Abraham Stiller.
East and West
Directed by Ivan Abramson and Sidney M. Goldin, 1923 (Austria)
East and West (Ost und West) is the oldest surviving Yiddish-language film. Morris Brown, who has changed his surname from Brownstein to better fit his new life in America, returns from New York to Galicia with his Americanized daughter Mollie to attend a family wedding. Mollie’s lively escapades (portrayed by Molly Picon) dominate the film, until she unexpectedly meets a shy young yeshiva student who renounces tradition to win her heart. Picon, an acclaimed American actress, became famous as the charming heroine of Yiddish cinema and later as Yente in Fiddler on the Roof. The film was subtitled in German only six months ago—Finland is among the first countries to screen it with subtitles.
Sat 08.11. at 16:00 – Duration: 1 h 22 min
Age limit: 16+ | Tickets: €20 / €18
Das alte Gesetz (The Ancient Law)
Directed by E.A. Dupont, 1923 (Germany)
This German classic explores the tension between tradition and modernity. Reflecting Enlightenment ideals, it sought to bridge ethnic divides between traditional Jewish minorities and the liberal non-Jewish elite in postwar Weimar Germany.
Set in the 1860s, it tells the story of Baruch Mayr, the son of an orthodox rabbi in a small Galician village, who dreams of becoming an actor after performing as King Ahasuerus in a Purim play. When his father rejects his ambition, Baruch leaves home and joins a travelling theatre troupe. His talent captures the attention of an Austrian Archduchess, who supports his career and introduces him to the director of Vienna’s Burgtheater. As Baruch’s fame grows, he assimilates further into secular life, but a longing for home draws him back to his village—and to Esther, his childhood love. Together they return to Vienna, hoping for his father’s blessing.
Sat 08.11. at 18:00 – Duration: 2 h 15 min
Age limit: 16+ | Tickets: €20 / €18
Erotikon
Directed by Mauritz Stiller, 1920 (Finland)
One of the first romantic comedies in film history, Erotikon pushed the boundaries of cinematic permissiveness. The story follows a married scientist who falls in love with a young woman while his wife becomes involved with his best friend. The film exudes the same refined sensuality later seen in the works of Erich von Stroheim and Cecil B. DeMille. Director Ernst Lubitsch cited Erotikon as a major influence on his own career.
Sun 09.11. at 15:00 – Duration: 1 h 39 min
Age limit: 16+ | Tickets: €20 / €18
The Song of the Scarlet Flower (Sången om den eldröda blomman)
Directed by Mauritz Stiller, 1919 (Finland)
Inspired by Victor Sjöström’s work, Stiller chose Johannes Linnankoski’s beloved novel The Song of the Scarlet Flower as the basis for his first masterpiece—an homage to his former homeland. The film is a sensual drama about Olavi, a young farmer’s son who leaves home after quarreling with his father and wanders as a lumberjack, charming women along his journey. Ultimately, he must confront his past and reconcile with his choices. The film’s score was composed by Armas Järnefelt, and it was shortened by half an hour after its premiere.
Sun 09.11. at 17:00 – Duration: 1 h 41 min
Age limit: 16+ | Tickets: €20 / €18
Gunnar Hede’s Saga (Gunnar Hedes saga)
Directed by Mauritz Stiller, 1923 (Finland)
Based on Selma Lagerlöf’s novel The Tale of a Manor, this film follows Gunnar Hede, a manor heir who joins a travelling entertainment troupe. His journey takes him north to Lapland among reindeer herders, where he experiences love, loss, and class conflict. The story explores moral choices, forgiveness, and the struggle between self-interest and altruism. It emphasizes the home as a refuge amid social injustice and personal turmoil. The most exotic sequence depicts a dramatic reindeer chase in Lapland. Approximately one-third of the original film is believed lost.
Sun 09.11. at 19:00 – Duration: 1 h 11 min
Age limit: 16+ | Tickets: €20 / €18