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From a comedy about Jewish gangsters in the Weequahic section of Newark to an Israeli film that traverses the dark underbelly of life in the Jaffa neighborhood of Tel Aviv, the fifth annual Jersey Shore Film Festival spans genres and the globe.

Over the course 22 days, from June 27 to July 18, the Monmouth County festival will screen more than 60 feature films and shorts at six different venues in Deal, Asbury Park, Ocean, and Long Branch.

The festival "is just exciting for the area and the filmmakers feel it's important enough that they should be here," Stevie Doueck, JSFF's founding director, told The Jewish State. "The festival is known in the industry as a place to be at."

If past years are any indication, Doueck, a resident of Deal, said he expects between 5,000-10,000 attendees at the festival.

Doueck explained that it's his job "to make sure the film festival lives up to its established reputation as one of the best film festivals for both directors and viewers."

To that end, Doueck, along with at least three or four screeners, viewed and evaluated the approximately 500 submissions from around the world, including from Canada, England, Hungary, Israel, India, France, and Spain.

Doueck said he and his screeners also visited Jewish film festivals around the country and "cherry picked" the best movies to screen. "We don't make compromises or settle for something that might be considered less than entertainment," he said.

However, Doueck added, entertainment does not have to come at the expense of meaning.

"I was looking to give our audience something of substance," he said. "That they feel when they walk away from it that they got something from it, a message as well as being entertained."

Many of the films, though certainly not all, are either made by Israeli filmmakers or have Jewish themes.

"There is an audience we are catering to, and because of that audience Israeli films and Jewish films took precedence," he noted.

Among the feature films is "A Matter of Size," a comedy about three overweight Israeli youth who become enraptured with Sumo wrestling and learn lessons about life and love along the way.

Another, "Ajami," an Israeli film nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film, tells the intersecting stories of four residents of Jaffa -- a young Israeli fighting a criminal vendetta against his family, a Palestinian refugee trying to find a way to finance a life-saving surgery, a Jewish police detective searching for his missing brother, and a wealthy Palestinian man who yearns for a future with his Jewish girlfriend.

The film "The Infidel" is a comedy about a British Muslim named Mahmud Nasir, who after his mother's death discovers his birth certificate, which reveals that he was in fact born Jewish and his given name was Solly Shimshillewitz.

The British film, Doueck said, "touches upon the timely subject regarding fanaticism."

While Doueck said he tried to avoid Holocaust films, he couldn't resist "Killing Kastzner." The film is about Israel Kastzner, a Hungarian Jew known as the "man who sold his soul to the devil" for negotiating with Adolf Eichmann to save the lives of thousands during the Holocaust.

"It is extremely important to have this subject once again brought to the fore," Doueck said, noting the complex ethical and moral questions raised in the film.

While most of the films selected were made in the last five years, there are several exceptions, such as the 1922 German film, "The Golem," based on a legend of Jewish mysticism.

In addition to the screenings, several of the films will include a discussion afterward by the respective director.

The Jersey Shore Film Festival's featured venue is the Axelrod Performing Arts Center in Deal. The other venues are the Film Salon at the Jewish Community Center in Deal, The Showroom in Asbury Park, Clearview Cinemas at Middlebrook Plaza in Ocean, McLoone's Supper Club in Asbury Park, and Pier Village in Long Branch.

For a complete listing of the films, screening times, and locations go to the Jersey Shore Film Festival's Web site at www.jerseyshorefilmfestival.com.