In the comedy DOUGH, which we’ll open April 29 at our West L.A., Pasadena and Encino theaters and May 6 in Claremont, curmudgeonly widower Nat Dayan (Jonathan Pryce) obstinately clings to his way of life and his livelihood as a Kosher bakery shop owner in London’s East End. With a dwindling clientele and the pressures of encroaching big box stores, Nat reluctantly enlists the help of teenager Ayyash, who has a secret side gig selling marijuana to help his struggling immigrant mother make ends meet. When Ayyash accidentally drops his stash into the mixing dough, the challah starts flying off the shelves and an unlikely friendship forms between the old Jewish baker and his young Muslim apprentice. DOUGH is a warmhearted and gently humorous story about overcoming prejudice and finding redemption in unexpected places.
Director John Goldschmidt said this about his film: “Some of the most innovative and successful independent films have been comedies with contemporary social themes. I was looking for such a story when I met the screenwriter Jez Freedman. He pitched DOUGH, a story about the unlikely friendship of an old Jewish baker and a young Muslim cannabis dealer. What I liked was the ‘buddy movie’ concept. Two guys as different as can be, divided by race, religion, and age. Both prejudiced about the other, but needing each other to survive. This is a universal story, which will be understood everywhere. Tensions between Muslims and Jews are increasing worldwide and the best way to challenge prejudice is through comedy.
“The story is set in a multi-cultural part of London and is a film of contrasts. From the ethnic High Street shops, to the corporate environment of a big supermarket chain. From middle class suburbia, to a grotty housing estate. From the staid adult community to the vibrant youth culture.
“But it’s the humanity of the film that connects with people everywhere. The characters touch and move the audience and the casting of the leading roles was paramount. Legendary theatre actor Jonathan Pryce as the old Jewish baker became a real father figure to first-time black actor Jerome Holder, who played the Muslim cannabis dealer. And I like to think that everyone, young and old, will leave the cinema with a smile on their face, and the word will spread about their enjoyment of DOUGH.”
Bonus: Pauline Collins is DOUGH‘s female lead and she created this greeting to audiences:
It’s that time again! The person who most accurately predicts the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science’s choices in all 24 categories, from the shorts to Best Motion Picture, will win fabulous prizes (free movies and concessions at Laemmle)!
First, we offer a 55th anniversary screening of 
The Academy Awards are many things: entertaining, infuriating, moving, boring. For foreign films, our bread and butter, the Oscars can be quite effective at bringing attention to worthy movies from abroad. That done, the next challenge for cinephiles in the general public is to find a way to see them as they were meant to be seen: on a big screen with an audience in a movie theater. In a typical year, the five nominees for the Foreign Language Film Oscar include one or two that hit theaters months earlier, one or two that are currently in theaters, and one or two that may come out after the big night. This year, that night is February 28 and as luck would have it all five films have or will have Laemmle engagements between now and the Academy Awards ceremony.
If you haven’t been keeping up with our