Triple threat, Director-Writer-Actor, Jonah Feingold will be in conversation with KUCI host, Janeane Bernstein to share details on his new film 31 CANDLES which screened at NBFF on Friday Oct 17, at 8pm.
The film follows Leo Kadner (Feingold), a hopeless romantic New Yorker who reconnects with his childhood crush Eva Shapiro while preparing for his 31-year-old Bar Mitzvah. The journey to the religious milestone is a whirlwind of relationships of the past (and future), an unexpected reconnection with faith, and the pressure of his family’s approval tightly woven into a return-to-rom-com special. Feingold’s goal in filmmaking has always been to bring back the nostalgia of the classic romantic comedy, a la Harry Met Sally and Notting Hill, with some Jewish joy added in, and his new film is no exception.
The trailer, which was released exclusively via IndieWire, can be viewed HERE. In addition to serving as the director and writer, Feingold stars in the film alongside beloved actors such as Jackie Sandler, Sarah Coffey, Caroline Aaron, among others.
You can buy tickets here: https://romantical.kit.com/31candles
It opens in LA on Dec 5!
JONAH FEINGOLD BIO
Jonah Feingold is one of the most exciting emerging filmmakers of his generation, with a passion for storytelling across mediums ranging from independent film to big-budget studio projects to digital short-form content. A graduate of USC’s School of Cinematic Arts, he spent a decade honing his craft in Los Angeles before returning to New York to pursue his filmmaking dreams.
His latest film 31 CANDLES, which he wrote, directed, and stars in, had its world premiere at The Miami Jewish Film Festival and will have a theatrical release via Level 33 this fall. The story follows Leo Kadner (Feingold), a hopeless romantic New Yorker who reconnects with his childhood crush Eva Shapiro (Sarah Coffey) while preparing for his 31-year-old Bar Mitzvah. The journey to the religious milestone is a whirlwind of relationships of the past (and future), an unexpected reconnection with faith, and the pressure of his family’s approval tightly woven into a return-to-rom-com special.
Feingold recently wrapped buddy comedy BUSBOYS starring David Spade and Theo Von, which is currently in post. Previously, he directed EXMAS for Freeve/Amazon starring Leighton Meester and Robbie Amell, which premiered in November 2023, and the film AT MIDNIGHT, starring Monica Barbaro and Deigo Boneta, which premiered on Paramount+ the same year.
DATING & NEW YORK, Feingold’s feature film debut, which he wrote, produced, and directed, originally premiered at the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival before it was released in theaters domestically via IFC in September that same year. As a lifelong fan of the pioneers of classic romantic comedies, such as Nora Ephron, Feingold used a mixture of his own, and those of his generation’s, trials and tribulations of dating in the modern era of dating apps and cell phones as inspiration for the film, which starred breakouts Jabuokie Young-White and Francesca Reale, with New York City’s natural romanticism as the backdrop. The film, which is rounded out by supporting cast members Catherine Cohen, Brian Muller, Jerry Ferrara, Arturo Castro, Taylor Hill, and Alex Moffat, among others, has also been acquired by Blue Fox for international distribution.
Under the banner of his creative studio, Romantical, Feingold has directed the viral filmette GOOD TO SEE YOU, which has reached more than 1.3 million views on YouTube and 9.6 million views across Instagram Reels, sparking a stream of dialogue around independent, creator-led content. Building on the success of festival standouts like Dating & New York and upcoming theatrical releases such as 31 Candles and Busboys, Feingold’s Romantical blurs the lines between traditional Hollywood cinema and digital-first storytelling — offering audiences modernized romantic comedies and genre-bending tales that celebrate connection, community, and the art of cinema itself.
To date, Feingold’s online directorial work has accumulated over 100 million views and can be seen on: Facebook Watch, BuzzFeed, Funny or Die, CNN, HuffPost and more. His viral Kickstarter backed short film BANGARANG (a prequel to Rufio from HOOK) broke the internet trending number one on Reddit, and number four on Twitter global.
He was previously the co-host of Hinge’s official dating and relationship podcast “Dating Sucks,” which then rebranded into a new podcast, “Seeing Other People,” and has been ranked #6 in relationship podcasts in the U.S.
