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10th ANNUAL ATLANTA JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL WRAPS WITH BOX OFFICE BOOM

It's a wrap!  A record 20,145 moviegoers attended the 10th annual Atlanta Jewish Film Festival (AJFF), which ran Jan. 13-24, 2010. With a 17 percent jump in attendance over the 2009 festival, the AJFF maintains its position as the largest film festival in Atlanta and the second largest Jewish film festival in the United States.

An additional 1,500 patrons attended the first-ever AJFF Gala Concert with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra on Jan. 4, 2010, at Atlanta Symphony Hall. The evening featured scores of classic Jewish-themed films such as Schindler's List, Yentl and Driving Miss Daisy. 

Kenny Blank, executive director for the AJFF, added, "We're so proud to finish the 10th anniversary year with such enthusiasm and support from the Atlanta community. We look forward to sharing more stories with an even bigger audience next year, as a tradition of storytelling continues."

This year's festival featured more than 50 films that showcased an international collection of contemporary narrative and documentary films that explored universal stories with Jewish themes. Films were screened at Lefont Sandy Springs Theater, Regal Cinemas Atlantic Station Stadium 16 and Regal Cinemas Medlock Crossing Stadium 18. 

The Atlanta Jewish Film Festival also announced the winners of the 2010 AJFF Audience Awards in the narrative and documentary categories. Audience winners are determined by popular vote by the AJFF audience.

Best Narrative Film: Who Do You Love, a film that tells the story of Leonard Chess, a Jewish nightclub owner from Poland who became a pioneer within the music industry after establishing Chess Records. Directed by theater titan Jerry Zaks, Who Do You Love made its U.S. premiere at the AJFF.

Best Documentary Film: Where I Stand: The Hank Greenspun Story, a highly entertaining profile of Hank Greenspun, Vegas icon, mob associate and newspaperman. Narrated by Anthony Hopkins, the documentary fuses archival footage and interviews to recount the real life adventures of Greenspun.

Both films will be featured at a special encore screening. Details will be announced at a future date.