11/05/2022 - The latest Israeli projects will be presented at the country’s pavilion, alongside a series of panels that are being organised for Marché du Film attendees

The Israeli Pavilion at the Cannes Marché du Film (17-25 May) will present some of the latest film productions from the country for 2022-2023. Among them is Kinship, a short film directed by Orin Kadoori that follows a young girl who explores new boundaries in her relationship with her widowed father, after a new woman enters his life. The film has been chosen for the Cinef selection this year (see the news). Furthermore, the project You Are My Everything by Michal Vinik has been picked up for this year’s Cannes Cinéfondation Atelier (see the news).

Another highlight in the selection is Karaoke by Moshe Rosenthal, a comedy about a married, middle-class, suburban couple in their sixties, who are drawn to their new neighbour. The film will have its world premiere in Tribeca’s International Narrative Competition next month.

The Rabinovich Foundation - Israel Cinema Project's annual panel at the Israeli Pavilion will be held on Friday 20 May and is titled “My Shero and I”, where ten WIFTI (Women in Film and Television) heads from six continents will discuss their “sheros” - or heroines - as role models, how they have helped them grow and, most importantly, how we can all use our own "shero" to help us achieve our personal and professional goals. The panel will be moderated by WIFTI president Helene Granqvist, with the participation of Tsiako Abesadze (WIFT Caucasus), Nicole Ackermann (WIFT Germany), Katie Bailiff (WFTV UK), Patricia Chica (WIFT Montreal), Osnat Bukofzer (WIFT Israel), Kissy Dugan (WIFTM Italy), Inya Lawal (WIFT Africa), Joyce Pierpoline (NYWIFT) and Petrina D'Rozario (WIFT India & Screen).

The second panel, hosted by the Ministry of Culture and Sport, will take place in the afternoon of 20 May, and the topic will be “Small Scale – Big Films”, delving into how various film commissions and institutions are dealing with current issues, and how they can assist their own film industries in these trying times. The panel will be moderated by Chris Marcich, chief executive officer of the Croatian Audiovisual Centre (HAVC), and it will include contributions from Aleksandra Božović, managing director of the Film Centre of Montenegro; Nataša Bučar, managing director of the Slovenian Film Centre; Stavroula Geronimaki, acting director of the Hellenic Film Commission; Melik Karapetyan, film commissioner at the National Cinema Center of Armenia; Natalie Movshovych, head of film at the Ukrainian Institute; and Diomides Nikita, cultural officer at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sport and Youth of Cyprus.

The third panel at the Israeli Pavilion, “Make. It. Short”, will be hosted by the Gesher Multicultural Film Fund and T-PORT on 22 May, and it will focus on rising filmmakers in the field of short films as a calling card or as a separate art form. The panel will be moderated by Amos Geva, co-founder and head of Industry and Strategic Partnerships at T-PORT, and among the panellists are Flavio Armone, international sales agent at Lights On; Irina Gurova, producer and head of iFilm Ltd; Émilie Poirier, head of Short Film at the Montreal Festival du Nouveau Cinéma; and Celine Roustan, senior programmer at Short of the Week.