The Seattle Jewish Film Festival, which began on March 14, concluded with a comedy at Mercer Island’s Stroum Jewish Community Center (SJCC) on Sunday evening.

The 10-day festival, which is celebrating its 20th year, closed with “Mr. Kaplan,” a film from Uruguay about an elderly man who becomes convinced that a local bar owner is a Nazi.

The J’s 350-seat theater — in its newly renovated auditorium — was filled almost to capacity. This year’s festival had seen record-breaking numbers of attendees, said Sarah Tobis, SJCC marketing and communications manager.

“The festival has a loyal following. People look forward to this event all year to see old friends, keep the tradition going, and engage Jewishly in a way that’s meaningful,” Tobis said.

More than 7,000 people attended the festival this year, which featured 32 films from 10 countries, including Golden Globe and Oscar contenders. Last weekend’s films, which included “Hanna’s Journey” and “Havana Curveball,” were shown at AMC Pacific Place in Seattle.

The audience favorite was “Run Boy Run,” which follows an 8-year-old boy as he flees from the Warsaw ghetto and across the Polish countryside and tries to maintain his Jewish identity, providing a rarely-seen view of the Holocaust through the eyes of a child.

The film festival is one pillar of the J’s year-round cultural arts program. The J is offering a cultural arts membership. Visit the website for more information or download an application.

“The festival and cultural arts program complement each other so nicely. Both have added sustained opportunities for people to come together as a community through the arts,” Tobis said. “One of the best parts is that so many of the people we’re seeing come through the doors have never been to the J before.”

In addition to the festival, the J organizes three to four marquee arts events every year, including an upcoming performance by Israeli Ethiopian Jazz artist Ester Rada on May 3.

“The curiosity, enthusiasm, and engagement of the community in exploring the world through Jewish and Israeli film has been wonderful,” said festival director Pamela Lavitt.

The J will continue to showcase the virtuosity and diversity of Jewish cinema, with year-round screenings of festival films.

“We’re greeting and seeing a cross section of the community — old friends, and people meeting for the first time — and having a dialogue, which is what this festival is all about,” said SJCC CEO Judy Neuman.