18th anniversary New Hampshire Jewish Film Festival (NHJFF)- opening night at the Rex Theatre in Manchester.
MANCHESTER, NH – The 2026 NH Jewish film festival hosted its opening night event at The Rex Theatre. As introduction to the screening of Elie Wiesel: Soul on Fire, Warren O’Reilly, Director of the Rex, and Pat Kalik got on stage to welcome the audience.
O’Reilly spoke warmly about the partnership with the NHJFF. He called it one of the collaborations he values most. The Rex has been part of Manchester’s cultural center since its opening in 1940 and its revitalization in 2019 transformed the space into a modern performance and film venue dedicated to community, live performance youth theater, and film.
O’Reilly went on to say “we are delighted to once again support a program that brings powerful storytelling and meaningful cultural experiences to our city,” as he introduced Pat Kalik, co-chair of the film festival.
Kalik recognized the many volunteers and sponsors. She acknowledged the significant time commitment it took the film committee to review and make selections of the films that are running in venues throughout New Hampshire now through March 29, 2026.
SOUL ON FIRE, The opening night film:
Filmmaker, screenwriter and lead producer Oren Rudavsky created this amazing 2024 film re-exploring Wiesel’s widely read and searing memoir Night. Now 80 years after the Holocaust, he reinterprets Wiesel’s experiences for multiple generations. Joel Orloff’s hand painted animation weaves the story together in this quilt of original interviews and archives. The film brings fresh understanding to Elie Wiesel’s (1926-2016) life as a well-known survivor and activist.
Film Festival details
There are 17 films and shorts over the full festival with showings in Manchester, Concord, Londonderry, Hanover, Keene and Portsmouth. The 2026 festival runs through March 29, 2026.
You can find the full list of films on the festival website here.