Local Spotlight: Cut To David (Thu Dec 3, 6:30 PM)

Join us for a one-day only community screening of Cut to David followed by a post-film discussion with the filmmaker Sandy Jaffe and family, and other participants in the film. ABOUT THE FILM: David’s story is beautifully layered from the start: An adopted, Chinese-American, transgender teen, raised in a Jewish home in Boston with a filmmaker for a mom, with a camera always close by. As David journeys from high school to college to adulthood, Sandy Jaffe’s camera documents her family’s evolving relationship as each participant has a turn steering the narrative. Blending vérité footage, home videos, and candid conversations, the film begins as an effort to understand David’s gender transition and expands into a deeper exploration of identity, agency, authorship, power, and the complicated yet loving bond between a mother and her son. An intimate, fly-on-the-wall documentary, CUT TO DAVID considers the possibilities—and perils—of living visibly and openly, exploring how ethnicity, gender, religion, and parenting shape who we become. Join us after the film for a discussion with Sandy Jaffe and family, and other participants in the film: Sandy Jaffe is a filmmaker and writer, and has taught screenwriting at various institutions in the Boston area. Her first documentary feature, Our Mockingbird, was a part of the PBS series America Reframed. She is a co-facilitator of a parent support group through Greater Boston PFLAG. Cut to David, her second feature documentary, premiered to a sold out audience at GlobeDocs 2026. Jay Blitzman is a former public defender who specialized in representing youth and late teens. He served for 24 years as a juvenile court judge, retiring as the First Justice of the Middlesex Division of the MA Juvenile Court. He teaches law, consults on youth and criminal issues, and advocates for supporting youth voice and agency in all contexts. David Blitzman graduated Magna Cum Laude from Ithaca College in 2020. He received his MSW in 2025 from Smith College School of Social Work, and works as a therapist in Greater Boston. David also volunteers for organizations which promote community engagement and collaboration.