On Saturday, Sept. 7 at 7:30 p.m., the Cinema Arts Centre in Huntington will be hosting Jeremy Newberger, director of the documentary film “Heading Home: The Tale of Team Israel.”
The documentary film, released in 2018, is a story of sport, patriotism and growth that follows the journey of Israel’s National Baseball Team, which was competing for the first time in the World Baseball Classic in 2017.
After years of defeat, Team Israel is finally ranked among the world’s best in 2017, eligible to compete in the prestigious international tournament. Their lineup included several Jewish American Major League players; including former Mets Ike Davis and Ty Kelly, Josh Zeid and ex-Braves catcher Ryan Lavarnway, most with a tenuous relationship to Judaism, let alone having ever set foot in Israel.
Their odyssey takes them from Tel Aviv and Jerusalem where they are greeted as heroes, to Seoul, South Korea, where they must debunk their has-been, wannabe reputations. With their Mensch on the Bench mascot by their side, the team laughs, cries, and does much soul-searching, discovering the pride of representing Israel on the world stage.
Newberger has previously made appearances at the Cinema Arts Centre for one of his other films, “Évocateur: The Morton Downey Jr. Movie.”
The film is 87 minutes long and will feature a screening of the documentary and a discussion with director Jeremy Newberger. The cost to attend is $12 for Cinema Arts Centre members and $17 for the public. For more information, visit www.cinemaartscentre.org.
Submitted by the Cinema Arts Centre.
