Leon Prudovsky\u2019s film \u201cFive Hours From Paris\u201d was awarded first prize in the Israeli Feature Films competition at the Haifa International Film Festival on Saturday, October 10th. Chairing the jury was actor Elliott Gould, honored guest of the festival. The jury included: Emma Clarke, Gideon Bachman, Eitan Even and Suha Arraf. The movie was produced by Haim Mecklberg, Estee Yacov-Mecklberg, Moshe Edry and Leon Edry.<\/p>\n
The movie describes the romance between Yigal, a taxi driver from Bat Yam with love of French chansons, and Lina, a music teacher. Two lonely people, who have just about given up on finding their heart\u2019s desire, encounter one another \u2013 and their adventure begins. The judges explained their decision, saying: \u201cWe felt that it is a very sophisticated film for a director\u2019s first feature. The clever and sensitive style and the way in which he approaches the complexities of this modern relationship creates an enchanting story which offers the audience great depth. The movie presents nuanced performances and attention to detail, and we believe that it will win the hearts of the audience as it has won ours.\u201d<\/p>\n
The prize for \u201cDiscovery of the Festival\u201d was awarded to screenwriters Erez Kav-El and Leon Prudovsky for \u201cFive Hours From Paris.\u201d The judges decision was based on \u201ca sensitive story told in a minimalist manner that respects the intelligence of the audience. It is a love story that also deals with the modern expectation that one must be a great success in order to be regarded as a functional human being. The movie\u2019s hero is everything but successful, but his inner strength enables him to remain true to himself. The screenplay of \u201cFive Hours From Paris\u201d is written with simplicity yet contains deep and varied layers of meaning.\u201d<\/p>\n
The prize for best actress in a feature was awarded jointly to Dana Ivgy and Maya Cohen for their roles in \u201cThere Were Nights.\u201d From the judges: \u201cWe arrived at our decision after observing a particularly complex role. The role required that the audience believe that a girl can simultaneously love her parent yet also be angry with him. In this case, the past influences the present and we found that it was not possible to separate the two. The charm of the young Goni, who has complete trust in her father, is set against the older Goni\u2019s awareness of his weakness, creating an utterly believable image, despite the fact that two different actresses play this role.\u201d<\/p>\n
The prize for best actor in a feature was awarded to Ofer Schecter for his role in \u201cPhobidilia.\u201d From the judges: \u201cOfer Schecter, known primarily for his many television roles and comic appearances, reveals a new aspect of himself through this role. His intensive presence on the screen won our hearts and proved that he has much to offer the world of cinema in the future.<\/p>\n
Anat Zuria\u2019s \u201cBlack Bus\u201d won the Israeli Documentary Competition. The film tells the story of Sara and Shlomit, two young Ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) women who are shunned by their society and their attempt to document the society from which they have fled. The judges noted Zuria\u2019s \u201ctotal commitment to bring a silenced and disturbing world to the screen in a fascinating film.\u201d Honorable mention was given to Iris Rubin for her film \u201cAsmar,\u201d which focused on the relationship of her parents.
\nWinner of the \u201cGolden Anchor Competition for Mediterranean Cinema\u201d was Turkish filmmaker Mahmut Fazil Coskun\u2019s \u201cWrong Rosary.\u201d<\/p>\n
The jury awarded an additional prize to Elia Suleiman\u2019s \u201cThe Time That Remains,\u201d saying: \u201cElia Suleiman\u2019s vision expounds in a burlesque manner the conflict which has gone on too long. The director conveys the central dramatic message while at the same time making us laugh.<\/p>\n
The film \u201cRoom and a Half\u201d directed by Andrey Khrzhanovsky, was awarded the FIPRESCI prize for new directors. According to the judges: \u201cThe film succeeds in creating an image of a time and place through the use of a variety of cinematic styles and techniques, combined in an original and brilliant manner. The movie presents a complex plot based on biographical and fictional details of the life of poet Joseph Brodsky.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Leon Prudovsky\u2019s film \u201cFive Hours From Paris\u201d was awarded first prize in the Israeli Feature Films competition at the Haifa International Film Festival on Saturday, October 10th. Chairing the jury was actor Elliott Gould, honored guest of the festival. The jury included: Emma Clarke, Gideon Bachman, Eitan Even and Suha Arraf. The movie was produced […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1775","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-film"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1775","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1775"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1775\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1775"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1775"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1775"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}