Isaak Popkin

A man and woman spend time with each other in their apartment. Presented as ten vignettes.

Noa attends her family’s Passover Seder for the first time since being put on a feeding tube for a gastrointestinal disorder. There, she is confronted with pushy family members, malfunctioning medical devices, and a room of food she can’t eat.

On a fire escape during a Passover seder, longtime family friends Talia and Ella realize their feelings for each other. It Isn’t Easy asks what it means to be Jewish and in love, even when family disapproves.

On the verge of his Bar Mitzvah, Simon’s recurring nightmares about dropping the Torah threaten to derail his big day. Simon is only three days away from his Bar Mitzvah and the nightmares are getting worse. This Saturday, he becomes a man in the eyes of Judaism. His Father, recently divorced, is on a religious journey of his own. Heartbroken by his ex-wife’s remarriage, Simon’s father has become an orthodox Jew. He spends his days wrapped in Tefillin, and cloaked in his Tallis. As Simon’s Father urges him towards blind faith rather than understanding, Simon finds himself haunted by his Torah portion and by his fear of dropping the Torah. As his Bar Mitzvah grows closer, Simon’s nightmares grow more vivid. As the day arrives, Simon is called forth in front of the entire congregation to deliver his Torah Portion, and to share his beliefs with the community. His father watches on, desperate to see his son take the same path as him.

Watching the Women Life Freedom revolution unfold in her home country of Iran from abroad, Mahnaz wishes to make a difference when she begins to befriend Roshan, who reminds her of home.

When Alice is invited to spend a week with her boyfriend and his friends in the country side, she discovers their secret tradition and becomes haunted by a past loss.