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TORONTO: Two Israeli movies to be showcased at Toronto’s LGBTQ Film Festival
Two Israeli movies to be showcased at this year’s INSIDEOUT festival, Toronto’s LGBTQ Film Festival… REVIEWS TO COME!
Water Wells – Saturday May 26th @ 5:15pm
TIFF BELL Lightbox CINEMA 2
Water Wells is a forbidden love story between a teacher, Lea, and her female student, Inka, set in 1940s Israel. As time goes by, Inka yearns to push more boundaries, while Lea’s fears of beingrevealed begin to surface.
Melting away – Monday May 21st @ 6:45pm
TIFF BELL Lightbox CINEMA 2
Melting Away is a thoroughly engrossing and heartfelt examination of a family drawn into crisis, which marks the first time in Israeli cinema a film has dealt with parents coming to terms with having a transgender child.
When Schlomo and Galya discover girls’ clothing hidden under the bed of their teenage son Assaf, they lock him out in the rain to teach him a lesson. Distraught by his parent’s reaction, Assaf decides to flee home and begin a new life.Years later when Schlomo is hospitalized with cancer, Galya hires a private detective to track down Assaf. The detective discovers Assaf is now living as Anna, a cabaret singer who works at Maxim Club, the local gay bar. Informed about her father’s worsening condition, Anna decides to visit her dad in the hospital but she panics at the last minute and tells him she’s a nurse sent by the insurance company.
The film follows Anna’s juggling act as she avoids her suspicious mother, counsels her closeted gay friend, Schimi, and tries to crack her father’s tough shell.
Grounded by a captivating performance by Israeli model Hen Yani as Anna, director Doron Eran created this meditation on family and acceptance after hearing about parents who refused to visit their children following the violent attack at the Tel Aviv Gay and Lesbian Community Center in 2009. Melting Away serves as the perfect response from a community looking for new ways to foster understanding and compassion.
Toronto Premiere
For more information and full festival schedule click here
Our ‘Canadian Ginger’ gets a taste of the city
By The Canadian Ginger (AKA D’vora Charness)
So there’s a yearly event in Tel Aviv called The Taste of the City (טעם העיר). It is a week long event taking place in one of the massive parks right by Tel Aviv University.
Tel Aviv’s local restaurants come and set up booths all around the park with their famous dishes at half the cost. The event attracts thousands of people a night who come and taste test all the delicious cuisine Tel Aviv has to offer. Bands are brought in and there are even special activities set up all around the park.
It was a super cool experience. Tons and tons of foods ad desserts, basically anything your heart and tummy desire was there and all at a price your wallet can appreciate!
I think my favorite part of the event was the entrance. I am a HUGE chocolate milk drinker, so to have a taste test of all the different flavors of chocolate milk and ice coffee from Yotvata (an Israeli milk products brand from a kibbutz in the south) was such a treat!
Starving myself all day before going was definitely worth it! Cannot wait for next year!
Israeli film one of Five Tribeca festival films to watch for
The Tribeca Film Festival wound down Sunday, reaching what organizers said was a 95% attendance rate at its screenings and panels. Of course, what plays to packed houses within the festival bubble won’t necessarily bring the crowds in outside it. What movies can you expect will attract some interest long after the last screening has ended? Here’s a diverse, but by no means exhaustive, list.
“The Flat”: Tribeca is known for documentaries, and this year was no exception. Receiving some of the best buzz from the festival was Arnon Goldfinger’s “The Flat,” a nonfiction tale about an Israeli man who begins to uncover some things about his Jewish grandparents after his grandmother dies and he is left cleaning out the Tel Aviv apartment she once shared with her husband. Reviews have been strong, and, without giving anything away, we’ll just say it’s a story that soon hops countries en route to some surprising discoveries. TRAILER BELOW
“The World Before Her”: We’re a bit removed from “Little Miss Sunshine” and “Slumdog Millionaire,” but a movie that combines elements of both in a story of Indian beauty pageants can only be interesting. The jury agreed too, handing Canadian director Nisha Pahuja its top documentary prize.
“Una Noche”: Hey, when your stars defect in an art-imitating-life twist, that always helps. Also of assistance: when you have a well-made and well-regarded movie, as Lucy Mulloy does, telling compellingly of the fictional (but entirely plausible) aspirations of three very different teenagers in a bleak but poetic Havana. The movie still doesn’t have U.S. distribution, but with all the attention paid the defectors, don’t be surprised if that ends soon, particularly for a company with a Latin focus.
“Resolution”: Starting out as a story about a man trying to get his buddy to go to rehab, Justin Benson and Aaron Scott Moorehead’s film soon evolves into a tale of secrets and narrative revelations. A smart marketer will call it a thriller, and maybe in the confines of a film festival it is, but many have recognized it for something else: strong storytelling with suspense and emotion.
“Fairhaven”: More to come on this one shortly, but suffice it to say that Tom O’Brien’s wistful drama about men in their 30s, stuck in and returning to their small New England town, will conjure up the 1990s hit “Beautiful Girls.” That’s a good thing. Starring Chris Messina, the suddenly omnipresent indie actor, in a movie that could easily have played Sundance to some acclaim.
Source: <a href=”http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/movies/2012/04/tribeca-film-festival-una-noche-five-movies-resolution-the-flat.html”>LAtimes
Israel’s ‘Policeman’ wins Buenos Aires Film Festival
Nadav Lapid’s first feature film continues to ride wave of critical acclaim, wins Best Film category in South America’s biggest film festival
Israeli film “Policeman” has won the Best Film category at the Buenos Aires International Film Festival riding a wave of worldwide critical acclaim. The film’s creator, Nadav Lapid also took home the best director award, in South America’s biggest film festival.
First screened last year, “Policeman” tells the story of an officer in the counter-terrorism unit and his encounter with a group of anti-capitalist anarchists who kidnap a billionaire.
The film sparked mixed reviews in Israel in the backdrop of last summer’s social protest. It has been restricted to viewers above the age of 18. The film stars Yiftach Klein, Michael Moshonov, Michael Aloni and Ben Adam.
“Policeman” is Lapid’s first feature film. His short films have been screened in the past in the Berlin, Cannes and Locarno festivals.
The movie debuted at the Jerusalem Film Festival, where it even won the Van Leer prize for Best First or Second Film by an Israeli Director.
Source: Ynetnews.com
MONTREAL: Israeli Film Festival
Shalom!
Once again, for the fourth time in five years, an Israeli film was nominated for an Academy Award® for Best Foreign Language Film. This year, Joseph Cedar’s “Footnote” was deemed among the best in the world, the second time one of his films was nominated for the honor (the first being “Beaufort” – also presented at the Montreal Israel Film Festival)!
Israeli cinema continues to flourish with a wide variety of films on a vast array of topics being produced. There is no better place to see these cinematic offerings than at the Montreal Israel Film Festival.
It all started eight years ago with a modest three day programme. It was then, at the closing night of the first Festival, when people gathered around pleading with me: “Promise us you will be here again next year.” It was then that I entered into an unwritten contract with my Montreal audience. For my part: I, for as long as I possibly can, will continue to organize this Festival, a top class festival, in my humble opinion.
Your part of the contract: you continue to come to see the best in Israeli film.
Since this pact took place eight years ago, I have put my heart into the Festival and, each year, seek out the best Israeli films and most interesting speakers to bring to Montreal.
Since this pact took place eight years ago, I have put my heart into the Festival and, continuously seek out the best Israeli films and most interesting speakers to bring to Montreal.
And you? Each year you fill the theaters, discuss the films and talk about the speakers. You truly provide us with the incentive to take the Festival to new heights . Above all, it is your commitment that guarantees our return to Montreal again and again.
One footnote (if I may!): Tell your friends, your colleagues, your neighbors, about us. Tweet and blog about us. Write about us on your Facebook page.
Continue to enthusiastically participate.
Thank you.
For more information and for a Schedule click here
Jonah Hill: “I’d like to thank Israel for Natalie Portman”
The Israel Film Festival kicked off last night with a special gala opening event at Paramount Studios in Hollywood. The evening’s honoree Jonah Hill was presented with the 2012 IFF Achievement in Film Award and was at a loss for words when coming on stage. “This is great, thank you very much, I’m honored and humbled”, said Hill and added jokingly a reference to his recent Oscar nomination, “forgive me for not preparing a speech, I was expecting Christopher Plumber to win”.
Following the screening of a reel from his on screen roles, a bashful Hill said “I just like making movies and I feel lucky that I get to make movies”, all the while apologizing for not being much of a speech person, “I’d like to thank Israel for creating a homebase for our people all over the world and most of all I’d like to thank Israel for Natalie Portman. We all love her and adore her”.
The 28yo actor, whose latest film “21 Jump Street” opens in theaters this weekend, was presented on stage by good friend and occasional co-star, Seth Rogen, who was in a particularly good mood, sarcastically saying that “I’ve known Jonah for a very long time… ever since we were kids we both dreamed of this honor”. He added that if organizers will decide to award him as well, that he’s available to pick up a statue.
Also honored at the gala, hosted by comedian Elon Gold (“Bones”, “The Mentalist”), were creators of Israel-bound series “Homeland” Alex Gansa & Howard Gordon, and David Nevins, president of Showtime, which airs the Golden Globe winningadaptation of Israel’s “Prisoners of War”. “David Nevins set his targets on this like an anti ballistic missile, saying ‘I want this on my network’… and it’s really been a dream for us”, said Gordon as the three received their honor, “Israel may not have oil, but it sure has talent as we’re seeing. There’s something very very special going on there… and we are so proud and honored to be part of freeing that talent to a broader audience”.
Seth Rogen teased organized about their selection of honorees and said “giving out an award to Jonah Hill and for a show about Islamic terrorists, you’re really bursting outside of the Israeli box this year, which is great, right? Shattering our stereotypes”. He later remembered his own visit to the holy land, telling the audience “Israel does seem to have a great respect for cinema, so much so that they’ve actually put an intermission in the middle of the movie, so you can go have a smoke and a beer. They actually do that. I was shocked”.
The event marks the beginning of the two weeks long festival, founded & organized by Meir Fenigstein for the 26th year, and featuring selected films from Israel. Guests at the gala included recent arrivals to the US, Israeli actors Oz Zehavi and Michael Moshonov, a glowing 2nd time mom Shirly Brener and Sarai Givaty. Visiting from Israel, among the attendees were actors Yaron Brobinsky & Chen Yanni and director Roi Werner, along with Limor Livnat, Israel’s Minister of Culture & Sport.
Source: Abbanibi.com