A spiritual conversation with the young Hollywood horror movie writer who used to watch Jewish bodies before they were buried in Toronto

Hanina Hoffman originally didn’t want to accept the offer to write a Hollywood horror flick with a Jewish theme. But he changed his mind once he realized he could help change the way Hasidic Jews are so often portrayed on screens, big and small.

He wanted to create something more sympathetic, like “Shtisel, the horror movie”, instead of something in the vein of shows like My Unorthodox Life and Unorthodox, where oppressed ultra-religious women flee their confined lives.

The resulting big-budget film, his first, is called The Devil’s Offering, and is currently available for digital rental and purchase online.

To create the script, Hoffman channelled his upbringing in Toronto as the son of a former ritual director at Adath Israel Congregation, including a teenaged job as a shomer at Benjamin’s funeral home.

Hanina "Hank" Hoffman joins The CJN Daily to reveal all the subtle—and not-so-subtle—nods to Jewish mysticism, including the film’s ancient demon.

What we talked about:

• Watch the trailer for The Devil’s Offering.
• Read more about producer Hanina Hoffman's Canadian background on The CJN.ca

Credits

The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Zachary Kauffman is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We’re a member of The CJN Podcast Network. To subscribe to this podcast, please watch this video. Donate to The CJN and receive a charitable tax receipt by clicking here.