Israeli films had strong prescence at Montreal World Film Fest

September 12th, 2012

The recent Montreal World Film Festival presented an impressive 432 films from 80 countries. The roster included a strong Israeli presence, as is the pattern throughout the international film festival circuit.
Israel distinguished itself with its student film submissions.  Twelve entries were accepted from the Tel Aviv University film school and the Sam Spiegel film school; one of which managed to break into the short film competition category.
A delegation of young Israeli filmmakers hailing from Tel Aviv University’s film and television department attended the festival to present their films, host Q & A periods and participate in a press conference organized by the festival  to celebrate Israeli cinema. The student film makers included:  Dekel Nitzan, director of Migrash (Cour/ Court), Eti Tsicko, director and screenplay writer of Resen (Laisse/ Dog-Leash), Itay Tal, director and screenplay writer of When you Played, and Gill Weinstein, director, screenplay writer and producer of Sachkan Safsal (Sur la touche/ Benched).
 “These short films clearly show the vitality of Israeli film, and the outstanding quality of the work of Israel's film schools. We look forward with excitement to future productions from these schools and their promising students,” declared the festival’s president, Serge Losique.
The sentiment was shared by audiences who crowded into theaters to catch a glimpse of the emerging talent.  Guy Ofran, the screenplay writer of the full-length Israeli-Franco-German feature Sharqiya (Ami Livne, 2012), was thrilled by the warm reception he received as he presented his film to a full-house.  Closed Season  by Franziska Schlotterer, the Israeli-German co-production won the Ecumenical prize.
In an interview, the Consul General of Israel, Joel Lion, a self-professed cinephile reveled in his country’s latest export: “It is an honor for Israel to have the Montreal World Film Festival as a platform to give audiences a peek into what the country has to offer; and how the students have reflectes the country’s vibrancy and translated it into cinematic oeuvres. ”n