Jerusalem Film Festival Explained

Jerusalem Film Festival
Location:Jerusalem
Awards:Wolgin / Haggiag Award for Israeli Cinema
Spirit of Freedom Award
Anat Pirchi Drama Award
Best International Film
Jewish Experience Awards
International Debut Award

The Jerusalem Film Festival (Hebrew: פסטיבל הקולנוע ירושלים, Arabic: مهرجان القدس السينمائي) is an international film festival held annually in Jerusalem, It was established in 1984 by the Director of the Jerusalem Cinematheque and Israeli Film Archive, Lia Van Leer, and has since become the main Israeli event for filmmakers and enthusiasts.[1] Over the course of ten days every summer, over 200 films from 60 countries are screened at the Festival, along with a variety of special events, panels, and meetings with prominent local and international filmmakers, as well as professional industry workshops and events.[2]

History

The Festival was established by Israel Prize recipient and founder of the Jerusalem Cinematheque and Israeli Film Archive, Lia Van Leer. After being invited to serve on the jury at the 1983 Cannes Film Festival, Van Leer decided to create Israel's first international film festival.[1] Already in its first year, the Festival had the honor of hosting key cinematic figures such as Jeanne Moreau, Lillian Gish, Warren Beatty and John Schlesinger.

Since 2005, the Festival has included the Pitch Point, a platform for Israeli artists to present their full-length feature projects in stages of development and production, to select members of the international film industry. This allows local filmmakers to create international networks of communication, expand financing and resources, and promote co-productions and potential collaborations.

Festival Competitions

The Festival spotlights Israeli cinema, with competitions carrying the largest awards, exposes local art to international journalists and professionals, screens Israeli premieres along with retrospectives and new restorations of the finest Israeli films. Through these competitions, nearly 10 million dollars in prizes have been awarded to Israeli filmmakers in the fields of feature, documentary, student, and short films.

Awards for Israeli Cinema

The Festival awards prizes for best international films. Other prizes are the In the Spirit of Freedom Award for cinematic pieces dealing with man's constant strife for justice and freedom, the Intersections prize competition for experimental film, the International Debut Award, the Jewish Experience Award for films dealing with issues of Jewish identity and history, and the Wim van Leer Award for High School Students.[3]

List of Wolgin / Haggiag Prize Recipients for Full-Length Feature Films

DirectorFilmYear
Isaac Zepel Yeshurun Green Fields1989
Daniel WachsmannThe Appointed1990
Avraham HeffnerLaura Adler's Last Love Affair1990
Savi GabizonShuru1991
Amos GuttmanAmazing Grace1992
Aner PremingerDummy in a Circle1993
Dan WolmanThe Distance 1994
Eli CohenUnder the Domim Tree1995
Savi GabizonLovesick on Nana Street1995
Joseph PichadzeUnder Western Eyes1996
Julie SchlezAfula Express1997
Amos GitaiYom Yom1998
Arik KaplunYana's Friends1999
DirectorFilmYear
Joseph PichadzeBesame Mucho2000
Dan WolmanForeign Sister2000
Dover KosashviliLate Marriage2001
Nir BergmanBroken Wings2002
Savi GabizonNina's Tragedies2003
Taufik Abu WaelAtash (Thirst)2004
Keren YedayaOr (My Treasure)2004
Eyal HalfonWhat a Wonderful Place2005
Dror SaboDead End2006
Eran KolirinThe Band's Visit2007
Shlomi Elkabetz and Ronit ElkabetzShiva2008
Yaron Shani and Scandar CoptiAjami2009
Nir BergmanIntimate Grammar2010
Yossi MadmoniGood Morning Mr. Fidelman2011
Ami LivneSharqiya2012
Tom ShovalYouth2013
Ronit and Shlomi ElkabetzGett – The Trial of Viviane Amsalem 2014
Tali Shalom EzerPrincess2014
Avishai SivanTikkun2015
Asaf PolonskyOne Week and a Day2016
Matan  YairScaffolding2017
Yona RozenkierThe Dive 2018
Tsivia Barkai-YacovRed Cow2018

Opening Event at Sultan's Pool

The Jerusalem Film Festival holds its traditional opening event at Sultan's Pool in the presence of film enthusiasts, public dignitaries, and invited guests.

YearDatesOpening FilmNotable Guests
1984May 27 – June 17Le Bal by Ettore ScolaWarren Beatty, Lillian Gish, John Schlesinger, Jeanne Moreau, Andre Delvaux, Marianne Rosenbaum, Edna Politi, Peter Patzak, Menachem Golan, Yoram Globus, Gila Almagor, Izza Genini, Dr. Martin Peretz, Lilly Rivlin, David McLeod, Michael Childers
1985June 1 – June 8Rembetiko by Costas FerrisVittorio Taviani, Paul Cox, Charlotte Silvera, Lindsay Kemp, Nina Rosenblum
1986June 28 – July 5Ginger and Fred by Federico FelliniAgnieszka Holland, Vera Belmont, Erika Szanto, Axel Corti, Tony Palmer, Klaus Hellwig, Izza Genini, Alain Marchand, Tuncel Kurtiz, Diana Rigg, Katalin Petenyi, Carol Polakoff, Desire Ecare, Binnie Kristal-Andersson, Seref Gur, Johanna Spector, Bengt and Irmgard von zur Muhlen
1987June 27 – July 4Late Summer Blues by Renen SchorrMarcello Mastroianni, Peter Ustinov, Jack Gold, Nagisa Oshima, Alan Arkin, Delphine Seyrig, Jorgen Leth, Marta Meszaros, Jan Nowicki, Stole Popov, Svetozar Cvetkovic, Giuseppe Rossini, Gilbert Marouani, Shiela Whitaker, Renee Lichtig, Kryzsztof Zanussi, Carl Davis
1988June 30 – July 9A Tribute to Israeli CinemaJane Birkin, Fanny Ardant, Atom Egoyan, Arsinée Khanjian, Andraas Gervai, Jose Luis Gutierrez, Erica Szanto, Official Soviet Cultural Delegation
1989June 29 – July 8Splendor, by Ettore ScolaMona Gamal el-din, Ildiko Enyedi, Chantal Akerman, Grazyna Szapolowska, Albert Johnson, Derek Malcolm, Srdjan Karanovic, Gerhard Sceumann, Jean-Claude Brisseau, Lino Brocka, Ivan Nitchev, Marina Goldovskaya, Fiorella Infascelli, Mark Shivas
1990July 12 – July 21The Appointed, by Daniel WachsmannSijiri Bakaba, Ayala Bakaba, Jiri Menzel, Paulus Manker, Gianni Amelio, Herbert Kline, Lucian Pintilie, Andras Suranyi, Henry Jaglom, Vladimir Alenikov, Jim Hoberman, Derek Malcolm
1991July 4 – July 13Homicide, by David MametMike Leigh, Roger Corman, Chen Kaige, Vera Belmont, Sasha Harari, Amos Poe, Deepa Mehta, Jon Jost, David Mamet
1992July 9 – July 18Howards End, by James Ivory, Strictly Ballroom, by Baz LuhrmannChris Marker, Hal Hartley, Adrienne Shelly, Alan Corneau, Gail Singerm, Lina Wermuller, Isaac Julien, Baz Luhrmann, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Katherine Gilday, Dana Rotberg, Janis Lundman
1993July 1 – July 10Much Ado About Nothing by Kenneth Branagh

(International Premiere)

Robert De Niro, Arnon Milchan, Harvey Keitel, Otar Iosseliani, Ed Pressman, Henry Jaglom, Dusan Makavejev, Ingrid Caven, Michael Kalik, Sally Potter, Idrissa Ouedraogo, Sheila Whitaker, Mark Shivas, Theo van de Sande
1994June 30 – July 9The Hudsucker Proxy by Joel CoenKrzysztof Kieslowski, Zbigniew Preisner, Irene Jacob, Marin Karmitz, Elia Kazan, Mahmoud Zemmouri, Rose Troche, Guinvere Turner, Susanne Bier, Mark Langer, Mark Shivas
1995July 6 – July 18The Madness of King George by Nicholas HytnerClaude Lelouch, Michel Boujenah, Alessandra Martines, Arnon Milchan, Arthur Cohen, Bertrand Tavernier, Henry Jaglom, Xavier Beauvois, Boaz Yakin, Robert Crumb, Vadim Abdrashitov, Savva Koulish, Laura Blum, Ridha Behi, Marina Cordoni, Astrid Frank, Izza Genini
1996July 4 – July 13Kansas City, by Robert AltmanKrzysztof Zanussi, Chantal Akerman, Derek Malcolm, Susanne Bier, Seymour Cassel, Pierre Chained, Danniel, Ricardo Dias, Jim Hoberman, Jose Lewgoy, Ken Lipper, David Robinson
1997July 10 – July 19The Fifth Element, by Luc BessonAlan Rudolph, Bob Hoskins, Christopher Hampton, Francesco Rosi, Clyde Jeavons, Herbert Beigel, Alan Berliner, Michael Verhoeven, Ulrike Ottinger, Becki Probst, Alexander Shpilyuk
1998July 9 – July 18The Big Lebowski, by the Coen BrothersRoberto Benigni, Manoel de Oliveira, Jeroen Krabbe, Alan Rickman, Jesse Peretz, Jeremy Thomas, Stanley Kwan, Ferzan Ozpetek, Andreas Thomopoulos, Lidia Bobrova
1999July 8 – July 17All About My Mother, by Pedro AlmodóvarTerrence Malick, Ettore Scola, Vittorio and Paolo Taviani, Marisa Paredes
The Jerusalem Film Festival opening event at the 21st Century
YearDatesOpening FilmNotable Guests
2000July 13 – July 22Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, by Ang LeeAng Lee, Anna Thomson, Anthony Bregman, Errol Morris, Istvan Szabo, Jack Wolgin, James Schamus Jerzy Stuhr, Kirk Douglas, Leon Constantiner, Michael Cacoyannis, Nuri Bilge Ceylan, Sabu, Wim Wenders, Volker Schlondorff
2001July 12 – July 21Shrek, by Andrew Adamson and Vicky JensonStephen Frears, B.Z Goldberg, Henry Bean, Malgorzata Szumowska, Ferzan Ozpetek, Radu Gabrea, Andrei Smirnov, Veronique Cayla, David Kessler, Diane Weyerman
2002July 18 – July 27Talk to Her by Pedro AlmodóvarKrzystof Zanussi,David Mamet,Anthony Bergman, Godfrey Cheshire,Amos Gitai
2003July 10 – July 19Hero by Zhang YimouGeoffrey Gilmore, Uri Fruchtmann, David Kustow, Hany Abu-Assad, Wolfgang Becker, Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne, Amos Kollek, Aviva Slesin, Sean Welch, Wouter Baremdrecht, Sandrine Brauer, Pierre Menahem, Michel Reilvac, Diane Weyerrmann
2004July 8 – July 17Life is a Miracle by Emir KusturicaAnthony Minghella, Emir Kusturica, Dimitri Epides, Ademir Kenovic, Chantal Akerman, Oliver Becker, Ludi Boeken, Anthony Bregman, Niv Fichman, Sam Green, Ulrike Ottinger, Sarig Peker, Jan Schuette, Prasanna Vithanage, Humbert Balsan, Marion Doring, Fabrizio Mosca, Nik Powell, Renate Roginas, Marieanne Bergmann, David Kessler
2005July 7 – July 16Karen Shakhnazarov, Buddhadeb Dasgupta, Ilya Khrzhanovsky, Chris McDonald, Marion Dörling, Marieanne Bergmann, Sharon Rivo, Niv Fischman, Peter Forgács, Lee Kang Sheng, Victor Silakong Kriengsak, Jean-Xavier de Lestrade, Tsai Ming-Liang, Michèle Ohayon, David Puttnam, Pola Rapaport
2006July 6 – July 15Someone to Run With by Oded Davidoff
2007July 5 – July 14Ratatouille, by Brad BirdDanny Dimbort, Avi Lerner, Azize Tan, Ulrike Ottinger, Wouter Barendrecht, Ehud Bleiberg, Susanne Bier, Jane Birkin, Phillipe Blasband, Jeffrey Blitz, Charles Burnett, Saverio Costanzo, Paul Cronin, Craig A. Emanuel, Neil Friedman, Sisse Graum Jørgensen, Anders Thomas Jensen, Dieter Kosslick, David Kustow, João Moreira Salles, Fabrizio Mosca, Michele Ohayon, Jeff Pulver, Michel Reilhac, David Thompson, Marit van den Elshout, Răzvan Vasilescu, Sean Welch
2008July 10 – July 19Wall-E, by Andrew StantonAnne Aghion, Anthoney Bergman, José Luis López-Linares, Lucia Cedrón, Molly Dineen, Peter Forgacs, Izza Genini, Huseyin Karabey, Dieter Koslik, David Kustow, Jean-Pierre Lledo, Sergei Loznitsa, Emilio Maillie, John Malkovich, David Schisgall, Michael Winterbottom, Boaz Yakin
2009July 9 – July 18A Matter of Size, by Sharon Maymon and Erez TadmorTheo Angelopoulos, Karin Albou, Michael Verhoeven, Larry Weinstein, Jacob Wang, Marat Sarulu, Gerald Peary, Peter Rodger, Maria Victoria Menis, Marion Laine
2010July 8 – July 17La Rafle, by Roselyne BoschJean Reno, Ulrike Ottinger
2011July 7 – July 16Super 8, by J.J. AbramsBéla Tarr
2012July 5 – July 14To Rome with Love, by Woody Allen
2013July 4 – July 13Hunting Elephants, by Reshef LeviRichard Linklater, Mohsen Makhmalbaf (Gabbeh, Kandahar, Salaam Cinema), Ben Nabors (William and the Windmill), Pablo Berger (Snow White),

Janus Merzovsky (Bad Boy), Gil Goldstein (Producer, Valentine Road), Jason Hot, Janet Tobias, Nadav Shirman, Goren Paskelievitz, George Slutzer, Neil Bersky, Rogero Gabay, Yael Melamed

2014July 10 – July 20Dancing Arabs, by Eran RiklisDavid Mamet, Park Chan-wook, Martina Gedeck
2015July 9 – July 19Mia Madre, by Nanni MorettiJohn Turturro, John Heyman, Alexander Kosta, Arend Agthe, Dennis Pals, Burhan Qurbani, Claudio Santamaria, Dietrich Brugman, Gabriel Ripstein, Gunter Jonsen, Jayro Bustamante, Mano Lokesh, Oren Shai, Philippe Lacote, Rodriger Zuchsland, Sebastian Schipper, Ulrich Seidl, David Holbrook, Avner Ben Naim
2016July 7 – July 17Julieta, by Pedro AlmodóvarQuentin Tarantino, Whit Stillman, Laurie Anderson, Andreas Sinanos, Dylan Liener, Grimun Hakonarson, Anthony Bregman, Alison Thompson, Giorgio Gosetti, Remi Burah, Roberto Ula, Esther Hoffenberg, Jenovefa Bokova, Christian Krones, Roland Schrotthofer, Daniel Raim, Magnus von Horn, Daniel Leconte, Fenton Bailey, Mary Beth Minnis
2017July 13 – July 23Redoubtable, by Michel HazanaviciusMichel Hazanavicius, Louis Garrel, Serge Toubiana, Philippe Garrel, Vasilina Makovestka, Ferenc Torok, Claude Lanzmann, Shaul Schwarz, Christina Clusiau, Clotilde Courau, Heinz Emigholz, Fellipe Gamarano Barbosa
2018July 27 – August 5The Unorthodox, by Eliran MalkaChristian Petzold, Sergei Loznitsa, Marcello Fonte, Laura Benson, Valeria Golino, Charles Tesson, Marietta Riesenbik

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Cinematheques' queen mother. Nirit Anderman. 14 July 2008. Haaretz. 1 September 2014.
  2. http://www.jff.org.il/?CategoryID=361&ArticleID=163&sng=1 About us
  3. http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1246443769237&pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull 2009 Jerusalem Film Festival