When brothers Joshua and Robert Sands made a short comedy film about synagogue etiquette, neither anticipated the attention it would attract.
The three-minute creation, titled How to Conduct Oneself in the Synagogue, is a take on the 1950s-style public information films. It features spoof characters Mr Greenbaum and Mr Goldstein giving advice on how to behave in synagogue be it finding one's place in the service, avoiding broiges and the danger of throwing sweets during a barmitzvah.
The film has had more than 10,000 hits on YouTube and was recently shown at the London Jewish Film Festival, where it received rave reviews.
Joshua (right), a 24 year-old trainee accountant and Robert, a 22 year-old medical student, have been making films as a hobby since 2002.
Joshua tells People: "This is the first one that's really been taken seriously." Robert adds: "It was just a bit of fun that we were having around Purim. We thought people would like it but we never thought it would be such a hit on YouTube. "It was also great to show it to an impartial audience at the Jewish Film Festival and it got a good reception so we were really pleased."
That said, the brothers are not considering a career in film. "It's just a hobby for us," says Joshua. "We both want to qualify in our fields." They are however working on a promotional movie for the United Synagogue youth-arm, Tribe, plus one for their local rabbi at Chigwell and Hainault Synagogue.
Their favourite bit of the film? "When the speaker says how dangerous it can be to throw sweets during a barmitzvah. A whole bunch of sweets are then thrown, practically knocking the barmitzvah boy over," says Robert.
