Livingston—A mother flees from her home in Pakistan with her 10-year-old daughter when the father promises a rival tribe leader his daughter’s hand in marriage. A woman teaches modern dance at a prison and the lives of the prisoners have never been the same. A guard at Jerusalem’s Wailing Wall follows a woman’s notes in the holy stones.

These captivating stories and several others, including Pakistan’s official entry into the 87th Academy Awards under Best Foreign Film, will be presented at this year’s Wonder of Women Film Festival, sponsored by the National Council of Jewish Women, Essex County Section (NCJW/Essex) on Sunday, November 1, at the Maurice Levin Theater on the Ross Family Campus of the Leon & Toby Cooperman JCC, 760 Northfield Avenue in West Orange. The Film Festival showcases the universal spirit and courage of women of all ages, manifested through short films and documentaries created by independent filmmakers. This one-day event will be held from 10 a.m.-3:15 p.m.

Following are summaries of some of the planned films. The final program is subject to change.

· Dukhtar (Daughter): The dramatic story of a mother who flees with her daughter after the father promises a rival tribe leader his daughter’s hand in marriage as a peace offering. The story takes a thrilling turn when the mother and daughter get a lift from a sympathetic truck driver who, after hearing the story, has to decide between saving his own life or protecting the duo and delivering them safely to Lahore.

· Hannah Cohen’s Hold Communion: Set in Dublin in the 1970s, this film explores a rarely glimpsed Ireland as seen through the eyes of spirited seven-year-old Hannah Cohen. Hannah can’t wait to make her Holy Communion—the only problem is, she’s Jewish!

· The Game Changer: Every Sunday afternoon for the last seven years, Susan Slotnick drove an hour up the mountains to the Woodbourne Correctional Facility, a medium security prison for men, to teach modern dance. The lives of men whom she touched have never been the same.

· To Be Like Avi: A coming-of-age story of three friends, refugees who fled Africa and left their families behind. The film follows them during their senior high school year. At the end of the year they will find out whether they can achieve the impossible and join the IDF or be deported back to their countries—and to a sentence of certain death.

· Dear God: A poetic Jerusalem seen through the eyes of Aaron, a simple Wailing Wall Guard, that follows a mysterious beautiful woman’s notes in the holy stones of Jerusalem.

“Each year the film festival brings to the screen thought-provoking, relevant and entertaining films by women that shed light on many aspects of women’s lives,” says NCJW/Essex President Deborah Legow Schatz. “We are extremely proud of our lineup this year.”

The fee for all-day admission is $45 per person for NCJW members and $60 per person for non-members. Non-members wishing to join NCJW/Essex can apply $15 toward a new yearly membership of $50. Included with the cost of admission is a kosher box lunch. Reservations are required. Seats will be available on a first-come basis on the day of the festival. For tickets and directions, please call NCJW/Essex at (973) 740-0588. Registration is available online at www.ncjwessex.org, or you may mail a check to NCJW/Essex, 70 South Orange Ave, Suite 120, Livingston, NJ 07039.

The film festival has been made possible through the generous support of Audrey and Norbert Gaelen.