Sderot Cinema Festival Announces New Funding Program for Local Directors

Sapir Academic College will launch a new financial incubator for local filmmakers at the 25th Cinema of the South Festival.

The Sderot Cinematheque hosts the event from November 1 to 5. The program includes television premieres, international screenings, and master classes. The college founded the festival, and this year’s lineup focuses on creators from Sderot and the western Negev. Many of these films examine life in the three years following the October 7 attacks.

The opening night features a discussion between Hanan Savyon and Guy Amir regarding their Netflix series, Bros. The audience will then see the world premiere of the first two episodes of the show’s second season. The series follows two childhood friends and Beitar Jerusalem fans who operate a pub together while facing personal and professional crises. Advance screenings include Motherland, a comedy-drama by Yael Hedaya starring Dana Ivgy, Sasson Gabay, and Alma Zack. Viewers will also watch Whose Daughter Are You?, a documentary series directed by Efrat Shalom Danon and Keren Shayo. The team behind the KAN series The Pshute will attend a session, including director Dan Messer and creators Bar Elmaliach Donzov, Chen Rotman, and Oshrit Sarusi.

Sapir graduates will present new projects during the festival. Efrat Corem screens Heart of Gold, which stars Chen Amsalem, Menashe Noy, and Israel Atias. Shir Houri Abu shows the documentary 100 Gates, and Tal Avitan presents Carlos Outside the Lines, a film about a soccer coach in Kiryat Gat. The festival will also screen eight winning films from previous years. Regional programming includes Sketches of the Soul, a collection of five shorts by western Negev filmmakers about life after October 7. Sami Shalom Chetrit will premiere My Beloved Gourama, a film about his father’s life in Morocco and Israel.

Swiss director Thomas Imbach will present two films and lead a master class in cooperation with the Swiss Embassy. The closing ceremony will launch Negba, a new incubator for young filmmakers from the south. The festival will close with a preview of Iris Zaki’s film What Was She Thinking?, which explores the choice not to have children. Zaki heads the college’s master’s program. The event will also honor editor Nili Feller, a two-time Ophir Award winner, with a tribute featuring four of her edited films and meetings with directors Ari Folman and Dani Rosenberg.