Loosely following a traditional Passover Seder, events from the Book of Exodus are retold by Moses, Aharon, the Angel of Death, Jesus, and the director’s own father. But there’s another side to this story: that of the Goddesses, humanity’s earliest deities. “Seder-Masochism” resurrects the Great Mother in a tragic struggle against the forces of patriarchy. -IMDB synopsis

…filled with tap-dancing Moses, the ten plagues, the visage of God (speaking in the voice of her late father), and swaying, cartwheeling, singing and spiraling Goddesses. Set to popular blues, rock, soul and spirituals, this film is an emotional, searing indictment of violence… -Excerpt from IMDB review

Wow, the world (esp. of creative ppl, or those who follow their work) is SO small! I met this filmmaker, Nina Paley, in NYC at a small Meetup event for the (now archived) blog, Sepia Mutiny. I followed several of that blog’s contributors; she was friends w/ members of this group (consisting of South Asians from around the US and world). Paley’s first animated film was Sita Sings the Blues; it focused partly on her relationship w/ her former husband (who transferred to India for his job) and also on the trials faced by the goddess Sita in the Hindu religion. This film is more closer to home for Paley (a secular Jewish woman); it’s about the Seder meal story, as well as her relationship w/ her (recently deceased) father.

The animation here is much more sophisticated; I’m not sure how to describe this type of graphic art. In the dialogues, there are humorous moments, along w/ very touching ones (giving us a glimpse into the dynamics of the filmmaker’s family). Paley’s father plays the Voice of God; he had an ambivalent relationship to his religion, though was proud to be of Jewish heritage. This film also has a big musical component; I think 3 of the songs she chose were new to me. These songs include spirituals, which are most often attributed to African-Americans. Since Paley believes in “free use,” you can download and view it yourself! Follow this link: https://sedermasochism.com/