The 8th Annual Rochester Jewish Film Festival is growing like most 8-year-olds, with more days, more quality features and documentaries from around the globe, and more special guests than ever before. For further information about this year's festival as well as RJFF's new endeavor, a monthly film series devoted to the Jewish experience, visit rjff.org or call 461-2000 ext. 235.

No; wait! First, a peek at some of the selections making up RJFF 2008...

Awkward, toothy Bernie Rubens is never the center of attention, so his impending rite of passage, with its promise of swanky gifts and lavish flattery, prompts him to plan "the Jesus Christ of bar mitzvahs" for the summer of 1966. But London is delirious with World Cup fever, and director Paul Weiland's sweetly nostalgic comedy "Sixty Six" chronicles Bernie's growing dread once he realizes his festivities fall on the same day as the finals at Wembley. Gregg Sulkin makes an excellent debut as the worried young man resorting to statistics and voodoo in hopes of thwarting the home team's chances, but he's more than matched by the gifted Eddie Marsan as his sad-sack father and, as his stylish, loving mum, Helena Bonham Carter, freed from her Victorian corsets and poured into a luscious parade of ‘60s wiggle dresses. Nothing happens that you can't predict, but its warm and quirky portrait of a family's foibles will remind you to call your parents. Not your dumb brother, though. (Sunday, July 13, 7 p.m., Dryden Theatre)

Israel's 2008 Oscar nominee "Beaufort" takes its title from a 12th-century fortress in Lebanon that the Israeli Defense Force occupied for 20 years before destroying the former Crusaders post in 2000 to keep it out of Hezbollah hands. Writer-director Joseph Cedar uses this backdrop to craft a meditative indictment of war's futility by experiencing Beaufort's claustrophobic last days through the eyes of its weary keepers. We get to know a little about each soldier - this makes it all the more difficult every time Death makes up its mercurial mind - and we watch as the fort's commanding officer tries to peel off the governmental red tape that binds his hands. Oshri Cohen as Liraz, the CO, is reminiscent of a young Colin Farrell with something yet to prove, but he's merely the highlight of a knockout cast that movingly personifies all young combat soldiers everywhere, religion be damned. (Monday, July 14, 8:45 p.m., Dryden Theatre)

One of Israel's first homespun family films, "Little Heroes" follows adorable Russian immigrant Alicia, her mentally challenged brother Lev, and Erez, the son of a fallen soldier, as they undertake a mission to rescue an injured couple. Alicia's powerful bat hearing is one of the lamer narrative devices you're likely to encounter, but it sets the story into motion as the trio treks through unfamiliar landscapes, including a dangerous proving ground and a bully-filled kibbutz, in hopes that they're not too late. Only a complete jerk would slam a kids' movie, especially one that features ambitious, responsible youngsters putting their differences aside for the common good. So while this one definitely could have been plotted with a little more truth, its well-meaning message rings loud and clear. (Tuesday, July 15, 2 p.m., JCC Hart Theatre)

Aviva aspires to published writer-dom, but daily drudgery that includes three teenagers, a crazy mom, a husband on the dole, and a demanding job in hospitality doesn't leave much time for creativity. She seems to be on the success track when a famous author takes an interest in her artistry, but the beautifully scripted "Aviva, My Love" has no plans to make things easy for our palindromic heroine. Filmmaker Shemi Zarhin demonstrates a preternaturally keen ear for the affectionate contention between sisters, though it admittedly helps to trust his words to the mouths of Israeli Film Academy award winners Assi Levy and Rotem Abuhab. As the tentative Aviva and the bossy Anita, these ladies provide a master class in both acting and reacting. (Wednesday, July 16, 9 p.m., Little Theatre)

How best to give back after you've made your fortune peddling filled bagels? Entrepreneur Larry Baras decided to honor the memory of his baseball-loving father by bringing America's pastime to Israel. No, Israel never asked for any such thing - the soccer-mad country has a grand total of two baseball diamonds - and the absorbing "Holy Land Hardball" documents Baras' uphill efforts to make it happen. "Except for players, fields, and fans, we got everything all set," one executive jokes early in the process, with no clue regarding the hoops Baras and his cronies will be jumping through. The draw here is the charismatic players themselves, including 40-something player/coach/father of three Eric Holtz, as well as Nate Fish, a former college star whom the camera absolutely adores. Many of the players felt their baseball aspirations were out of reach, and the joy felt by the men able to combine their dreams with their faith is infectious. (Sunday, July 20, 1 p.m., Little Theatre)

The fond, funny, and occasionally filthy documentary "Making Trouble" uses lovely archival footage to cobble together an important look at the trailblazing Jewish comediennes of the 20th century. As filmmaker Rachel Talbot focuses on talent as varied as Yiddish theater star Molly Picon, pioneering standup Joan Rivers, and sketch-comedy goddess Gilda Radner, she paints a portrait of a fearless brand of woman who saw the line, crossed it, and then lifted it so others could sashay under. A quartet of their modern-day legacies, including the hilarious Judy Gold, chat over pickles and corned beef about how these ladies paved the way not just for Jewish women, but for all the funny girls hoping to shatter the glass ceiling in a traditionally male-dominated field. (Sunday, July 20, 7 p.m., Dryden Theatre) 

2008 Rochester Jewish Film Festival

July 13-21

Little Theatre, 240 East Ave | Dryden Theatre, 900 East Ave | JCC, 1200 Edgewood Ave

461-2000 ext 235, jff.org