The 13th annual Pittsburgh Jewish-Israeli Film Festival will open March 16 with "Live and Become," the story of an Ethiopian boy saved from the 1984 famine as part of a secret American-Israeli mission dubbed "Operation Moses."

The child is adopted by a loving French Sephardic family but is tormented by his hidden past. Directed by Radu Mihaileanu, "Live and Become" won audience awards at Jewish film festivals in Boston, Washington, D.C., Palm Beach and Miami and was honored at festivals in Berlin and Copenhagen.

Once again, the festival will spread its wings and reach beyond the city boundaries and add suburban locations for a few movies. In addition to the SouthSide Works Cinemas, the festival will screen movies at the Galleria in Mt. Lebanon, Cranberry 8 in Cranberry and Carmike 15 in Greensburg.

Most of the movies will be Pittsburgh premieres, a coup for the festival, which last year booked well-received movies such as "Walk on Water," "Paper Clips" and "Watermarks," which returned for commercial runs.

Kathryn Spitz, executive director of the festival, started with a pool of 150 films and narrowed the list to 50, then screened by a selection committee. "There's something for everyone," says Spitz, who is particularly proud of the festival's diversity and ability to showcase films that would not otherwise be screened here.

On March 1, you can buy tickets by calling 412-992-5203 or going to www.ujfpittsburgh.org/filmfestival. Opening-night tickets are $25 general admission ($10 for students) before March 10 or $30 after March 10.

All other screenings: $8, general admission; $7, seniors 65 and older; $6, groups of 12 or more; $5, students with valid ID.

The festival, a program of the United Jewish Federation, will run from March 16 through April 2 and feature these selections:

"Live and Become" -- See above. Movie screens March 16 at 7 p.m. at SouthSide Works, with reception (dietary laws observed) afterward. Repeats March 20 at 7 p.m. at Cranberry 8 and March 22 at 7 p.m., Carmike 15.

"Suzie Gold" -- Romantic comedy set in North London, where Suzie (Summer Phoenix) suffers an identity crisis after her younger sister gets engaged. March 18 at 7:30 p.m., SouthSide Works.

"The Orthodox Way" and "Until Tomorrow Comes" -- The first is a 25-minute romantic comedy about a single guy who picks up the wrong girl on a blind date. The other is a 65-minute feature about a middle-age woman who must deal with an unexpected courtship, her mother's increasing dementia and her daughter's marital crisis. March 18 at 9:30 p.m., SouthSide Works.

"Sister Rose's Passion" and "From Pittsburgh to Poland: Lessons of the Holocaust" -- Sister Rose Thering, an activist in the fight against anti-Semitism in the Catholic Church, is the focus of a 39-minute documentary. "From Pittsburgh to Poland" is an hourlong "OnQ" special, which aired on WQED in November, chronicling a trip by Holocaust survivors and Pittsburgh teachers. March 19 at 1 p.m., SouthSide Works.

"A Cantor's Tale" -- Cantor Jackie Mendelson takes moviegoers on a journey through the golden days of chazzanut or cantorial music. March 19 at 4 p.m., SouthSide Works.

"No Longer 17" -- A kibbutz in crisis pits founding members against youthful newcomers. March 19 at 7 p.m., SouthSide Works.

"Only Human" -- Twisted Spanish black comedy about a woman who brings her Palestinian fiance home to meet her hyperactive Jewish family. March 21 at 7:30 p.m., Galleria. Repeats March 25 at 7:30 p.m., SouthSide Works.

"Fateless" -- Hungarian film, adapted from Imre Kertesz's autobiographical novel about his experiences as a teen survivor of Auschwitz-Birkenau and Buchenwald. March 23 at 7 p.m., SouthSide Works.

"Little Jerusalem" -- A low-income suburb of Paris nicknamed "Little Jerusalem" provides the backdrop for this story of two sisters. March 25 at 9:30 p.m., SouthSide Works.

"39 Pounds of Love" -- The title refers to the weight of a 34-year-old man with muscular dystrophy who is paralyzed except for a single finger but embarks on a cross-country road trip. Producers have been invited. March 27 at 7:30 p.m., Galleria.

"Stand at Ease" and "Jericho's Echo: Punk Rock in the Holy Land" -- The first is a 19-minute video about an 18-year-old torn between music and Army service. "Jericho's Echo" is a look inside the small but passionate Israeli punk scene. March 26 at 4 p.m., SouthSide Works.

"The Barbeque People" -- An Iraqi Jewish family, celebrating Israel's 40th Independence Day, grapples with its past and future. March 26 at 7 p.m. and April 1 at 9:30 p.m., SouthSide Works.

"The Ritchie Boys" -- Documentary about young men who fled Nazi Germany, were trained in intelligence and psychological warfare at Camp Ritchie, Md., and returned to Europe as soldiers. March 29 at 7:30 p.m., SouthSide Works.

"Campfire" -- Director Joseph Cedar's award-winning film follows a 42-year-old Jerusalem widow's attempts to join the settler movement in the 1980s. March 30 at 7:30 p.m., SouthSide Works.

"The First Time I Was 20" -- Set in 1960s France, this film is about a 16-year-old girl who wants to play in her school's prestigious all-male band. April 1 at 7:45 p.m. and April 2 at 4 p.m, SouthSide Works.

"Nicholas Winton: The Power of Good" -- Emmy-winning documentary about an Englishman who saved 669 children from Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia in 1939. April 2 at 1 p.m., SouthSide Works.

"Encounter Point" -- Excerpts from Ronit Avni's documentary about a diverse group of people risking their lives to promote peace in the Middle East. Program to follow with producer Nahanni Rous. April 2 at 7 p.m., SouthSide Works.

All films and programs are subject to change.