Israeli Film Festival

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	Archives from the Festival in 2006
	Campfire Academy Award Winner 2005 94 min Director : Joseph Cedar Language : Hebrew/with English subtitles	A young widow wants to change her life and protect her family by moving to a religious settlement. Her two teenage daughters have different ideas. The daughters are both going through growing pains, as they explore the opposite sex and its repercussions. Moshe Ivgy is endearing in this compelling film as Yossi a mini-bus driver, a middle aged virgin on the lookout for a wife.
	No. 17 is Anonymous Israeli Academy Award for Best Documentary, 2003 75 minutes Director : David Ofek Language: Hebrew with English subtitles	Director David Ofek plays detective in this fascinating real life "CSI" that keeps one glued to the story as it unravels an all too real mystery. In June 2002, a bus on its way to Tiberius from Tel Aviv, was bombed. 17 people were killed, 16 were identified. No. 17 wasn’t. He was buried a few weeks later – anonymously. The police stopped searching, believing that he must have been a foreign worker. This is where the filmmakers step in, documenting in real time over a period of six months the search for the identity of a man no one claimed missing. The film takes the form of a detective investigation. When it seems that the investigation has reached a dead end a vague lead appears.
	Syrian Bride Winner of Best Film, Montreal 2004 96 minutes Director : Eran Ricklis Language : Arabic, Hebrew, English, Russian, French with English subtitles	The film is set in the windy hills along the Israeli and Syrian border. Leaving her village in the Golan Heights, Mona will cross the border to marry the arranged Syrian fiancée, she has never met, as is dictated by Druze custom. Even with the pending celebrations, this may be the saddest day in Mona’s life, as once she crosses through to the other side she may never see her family again.
	Insight Winner of Best Documentary 2005 Israeli Academy of Film and Television 70 minutes Director : Dani Menkin Language : Hebrew and Spanish with English subtitles Arabic, Hebrew, English, Russian, French with English subtitles	Ami Ankilewitz, an American-born Israeli, was diagnosed at the age of 1 with a rare form of Muscular Dystrophy. His doctor predicted he'd die before the age of six. Now at the age of 34, Ami who weighs only 39 pounds, works in Israel as a 3D animator. Defeating the odds until now, Ami decides to take his biggest risk yet and fulfill a life long dream... The film follows a riveting cross-country journey that Ami took with friends across the USA to look for the doctor who thought he wouldn't survive. 39 Pounds of Love is an inspirational and humorous account of an unforgettable man and a remarkable journey.
	Or (Mon Tresor) Winner of Best Actress (Dana Ivgy) Israeli Film Academy 2004 100 minutes Director : Keren Yedaya Language : Hebrew with English subtitles	Ruthie and Or, a mother and her daughter, live in a small Tel Aviv flat. Ruthie has been a prostitute for the last twenty years. Or has tried many times to have her quit working the street, but without success. The daily routine of the 17 year-old Or is an endless succession of petty jobs - washing dishes in a restaurant, cleaning staircases and collecting deposit bottles while attending high school whenever she can. Ruthie's health is worsening. After an umpteenth visit to her mother at the hospital, Or decides that this time, things must change for good.
	A Green Chariot 47 minutes Director : Gilad Goldschmidt Language : Hebrew, Russian with English subtitles	Yair, originally from Russia, finds a necklace with a cross in his dead mother’s possessions. He panics. He is religious, a top Torah student and engaged to a beautiful religious girl from a good family. His fear and insecurity regarding his true religious identity run to his core. Yair explores his roots, seeking out old friends to help rediscover himself. A heartfelt tale of faith and commitment.
	Eicha 21 minutes Director : Eliezer Shapiro Language : Hebrew with English subtitles	Eicha is a young religious girl living in a West Bank community. Her name is shared with the biblical Scroll of Lamentations read on Tisha B’av, the annual fast day commemorating the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. Tisha B’av is also Eicha’s birthday. Upon turning 18, she decides to change her name and try to establish her own identity.
	Metallic Blues Best Screenplay and Best Actor (Moshe Ivgy), Jerusalem Film Festival, 2004 90 minutes Director : Danny Verete Language : Hebrew, German, English with English subtitles	Two Israeli car dealers head to Germany with dreams of turning a quick buck. The opportunity of a lifetime - in form of a '78 Lincoln stretch Limo - has crossed paths with the two Israeli car dealers Shmuel (Avi Kushnir) and Siso (Moshe Ivgy). In search of a better life, they risk it all and ship the car, along with their dreams, to Germany. This touching and quirky road show follows their bumpy ride dealing with financial mishaps and ghosts of the Holocaust.

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Archives from the Festival in 2006