Other Screenings
Opening remarks by writer Shalom Auslander
Shalom Auslander grew up in the Orthodox Jewish community of Monsey, New York – the son of an alcoholic father, a guilt-ridden mother, and a wrathful and controlling God. For years, he believed he had escaped all that, but as middle age approached, he realized there was one thing he couldn’t outrun: a story. More precisely, the story – the ancient narrative etched into him since childhood, in which we are sinners, damaged, and shameful. This story, Auslander argues, continues to be told by both the religious and the secular.
His latest book, Feh: A Memoir (Kinneret Zmora-Bitan, 2024, translated by Erez Asherov), is a caustic, darkly funny, and artistically nuanced satire that offers a fresh look at identity, religion, heritage and guilt.