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Tucsonans don't have to wait long to dive into the first film festivals of 2009.

The 18th annual Tucson Jewish Film Festival, which features films and performances about the Jewish experience, starts Saturday.

And the Tucson Slow Food & Film Festival, now in its fourth year of celebrating food-centered movies, begins tonight.

The Tucson Jewish Film Festival, with daily screenings for nearly two weeks, is one of the most established and most popular film festivals in Tucson.

Organizers say it's grown every year, with attendance nearly doubling in the past five years to 5,500 in 2008.

"We see families, old people and young people especially," festival director Susan Silverman said. "It's reflective of the films that are shown."

This year's lineup includes "Praying With Lior" (2007), a documentary about the spirituality of a boy with Down syndrome; "Sixty Six" (2006), with Helena Bonham Carter, a dramedy about a boy whose bar mitzvah falls during the 1966 World Cup Final; and "Blessed Is the Match" (2008) that has been short-listed for an Academy Award for best documentary.

The festival has also evolved by integrating live performing arts in recent years. This year there will be stand-up comedy and a performance by a Jewish blues band.

The Slow Food movement is an international effort to counteract fast food and fast life.

The local group, Slow Food Tucson, organizes the festival, which involves meals, tastings and screenings of a few well-known feature films such as "Ratatouille," along with shorts. There are also guest speakers and talks from filmmakers.

Bob Berzok, Slow Food Tucson's treasurer and one of its founders, said the festival is especially popular with middle-age "foodies."

Berzok said he likes how the film festival has developed and wouldn't like to see it expand.

In fact, he and his wife, Linda, eliminated the usual dinner-and-film Saturday night to make the festival a little shorter.

"With the economy the way it is, the notion of simplifying strikes with people," Berzok said.

Tucson Jewish Film Festival

• When: Saturday through Jan. 22, plus Feb. 15, Feb. 22 and March 1.

• Where: The Tucson Jewish Community Center, the Loft Cinema and the Gallagher Theater.

• Cost: Festival passes $85. Admission to individual screenings ranges from $9 to $18. Many films include guest speakers. You can buy tickets online or by calling 299-3000, Ext. 200.

• Info: tucsonjewishfilmfestival.org

• 7:30 p.m. — Opening Night Celebration. San Francisco comedian Lisa Geduldig performs. Followed by an

• 8 p.m. screening of "Noodle," an Israeli film about a flight attendant who befriends a Chinese boy who's been deported from Israel.

• 2 p.m. — "Praying With Lior." Documentary about a boy with Down syndrome who spends his life praying.

• 6 p.m. — Arts for All Adult Dance ensemble performs.

• 6:30 p.m. — Introductory remarks from Ilana Trachtman, director of "Praying With Lior."

• 7 p.m. — "Leaving Paradise: The Jews of Jamaica." The documentary is followed by a screening of "Praying With Lior."

• 7 p.m. — "My Father My Lord." A drama about an Orthodox rabbi's relationship with his son.

• 6 p.m. — "Eyewitness, 60 Years." A documentary about the history of Israel.

• 7:30 p.m. — "Love and Dance," a drama about a boy caught in the middle of a contentious marriage of his Russian mother and Israeli father.

• 1 p.m. — "His Wife's Lover" features the only film performance by comedian Ludwig Satz.

• 7 p.m. — A double feature: "Torte Bluma" and "Blessed is the Match: The Life and Death of Hannah Senesh."

Tucson Slow Food & Film Festival

Events range from $20 for screenings to $75 for meals with screenings. Packages range from $140 per person for two movies and two restaurants to $270 for a four-day package. Discounts available. Go to slowfoodtucson.org for more information.

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