Print - The Canadian Jewish Heritage Network - Alex Dworkin Canadian Jewish Archives

Scope and Content: The fonds consists of 131 canisters of film reels, some with many reels per canister, as well as several dozen additional loose sound reels, adding up to a total of 411 reels, most of which were used in making the film "20 Ans Après". The 37 canisters of synched sound and audio material in Series A…

Scope and Content: The fonds consists of 131 canisters of film reels, some with many reels per canister, as well as several dozen additional loose sound reels, adding up to a total of 411 reels, most of which were used in making the film "20 Ans Après". The 37 canisters of synched sound and audio material in Series A were all filmed within the Montreal Jewish community of the mid 1970s. They cover most of the same topics that appear in the film, but in a more discursive manner than the final production could allow. As a result, they more fully reveal the breadth of the discussions and the scope of the concerns of the Montreal Jewish community at that time. In this regard, they may be among the most informative sources of information available about Francophone Jews in 1970s Quebec. The material in Series B consists mainly of additional elements used in the making of the film, such as archival footage of Jews in Morocco, and background sound, as well as some sound reels that appear to be associated with other Bensimon productions.

History / Biographical: This is the only film about Moroccan Jews in Montreal (released 1977), 20 ans après documents the first 20 years of the Montreal Moroccan Jewish community. Jacques Bensimon was born in Morocco and came to Canada in 1958 with his family. He studied cinema at University of New York. In 1968, he started working with the NFB as a film editor and the as director. Jacques Bensimon made several films for the National Film Board about Morocco; Once . Agadir, Aqua Rondo, Carnets du Maroc III - La Volonté et la Foi, Carnets du Maroc II - Au sujet du Roi, Carnets du Maroc I - Mémoire à rebours. Other works by Jacques Bensimon are; With Hands and Hope, Richard Rohmer and His Referendum - A View from Quebec, and Rock-a-bye.

Custodial History: Donated by Mr. Jacques Bensimon, through J. Dahan, of the Communauté Sépharde du Québec in July 1997.

Notes: Alpha-numeric designations: P97/10.Related groups of records: Completed film 20 ans aprés (National Film Board video) in video collection.