From February 16 to 19, the festival "Week of Israeli Cinema" will be held in Kyiv's Zhovten cinema. The Embassy of the State of Israel in Ukraine and the Arthouse Traffic film company will hold the event.
"This is a symbolic message because indomitability is a common feature of the peoples of Israel and Ukraine. (…) Ukraine has been restraining Russian aggression for 11 months, and life, particularly cultural life, does not pause here either - even despite the war and blackouts, film festivals continue." , - say the organizers.
The film review will show four iconic Israeli films, nominees and laureates of the Israel Film Academy Award, and films participating in the Haifa Film Festival.
The event will be opened by the epic war drama "Image of Victory", based on the real events of the Israeli War of Independence. Inspired by true events in 1948. Hassanin, an Egyptian filmmaker, is tasked with documenting a raid on the isolated kibbutz Nitzanim. When the kibbutz learns of the impending army raid, Mira, a young but valiant mother, is forced to reckon with the true cost of war and make an impossible choice.
The touching drama "Good Morning Son" masterfully reflects the trials and tribulations faced by military families in Israel and around the world. In the center of the plot is a seriously wounded soldier and his family, friends, and doctors fighting for the young man's life.
The film was screened in the national competition program of the 2018 Haifa International Film Festival.
There is also a comedy in the selection - the film "Paris Boutique". Nominated for six Israeli Academy Awards (Ophirs) and starring Nelly Tagar (MJFF films Zero Motivation and The Art of Waiting), Paris Boutique is a delightful romantic comedy about love and friendship. French-Jewish lawyer Louise takes a break from planning her lavish wedding in Paris to go on a short business trip to Jerusalem, where she hopes to seal a multimillion-euro property deal. Landing in Israel, she has the misfortune of being met at the airport by Neta, a broke (and heartbroken) cab driver who tries to swindle her wealthy client out of just enough money to cover her debts. What starts as a hellish visit, however, ends with both women becoming not only fast friends but also head over heels in love – this time, with the right men.
"Here we are!" — a film about a man devoted his life to raising a son with autism. When the boy becomes an adult, he has to move to a specialized institution, but his father, who is not ready for separation, organizes an escape.
In 2020, the film was selected for the official program of the Cannes Film Festival. In its homeland, the film won the Israel Film Academy Awards for the best direction, screenplay, and work of actors of the first and second plans.
