The Dryden will screen Les enfants de la chance (The Children of Chance, Malik Chibane, France 2015, 95 min., DCP, French w/subtitles) as part of the Rochester International Jewish Film Festival.

In this tender coming-of-age drama, a Jewish boy finds friendship and safety in the shelter of a children's hospital in Nazi-occupied France. In a lucky misfortune, young Maurice Gutman (Matteo Perez) narrowly escapes a round-up of Jews in Paris, after breaking his leg in a dust-up with bullies. Whisked away in an ambulance, he is forced to watch helplessly as his family is arrested by French police, and he is diagnosed with tuberculosis and committed to a long-term-treatment facility in the suburb of Garches. There, isolated from the outside world and sheltered from German occupying forces, he forms a close bond with the other boys of the ward. As the war intensifies, the sympathetic chief physician (César-winner Philippe Torreton) and his hospital staff resort to drastic measures to keep the Jewish patients safe from Nazi patrols. Winner of the European Children's Film Association award and based on a true story, The Children of Chance is a testament to the resilience and bravery of youth, as captured in the charming, naturalistic performances of its young ensemble cast.

[source: George Eastman Museum calendar, 2017-Jul-10]