“Ajami” was a joint production of two young Israeli filmmakers,
Scandar Copti, a Christian Arab, and Yaron Shani, a Jew. It was
Israel’s top drawer at the box office in the past year.
Just hours before the Oscars ceremony, Copti said he was not
representing Israel.
“I am not the Israeli national team and I do not represent
Israel,”
Copti said in an interview on Israel’s Channel 2. “It is an
extremely
technical thing, that’s how it works in the Oscars. It says ‘Israel’
because the funding comes from Israel. There’s a Palestinian director,
an Israeli director, Palestinian actors and Israeli actors. The film
technically represents Israel, but I don’t represent Israel.”
“The film ‘Ajami’ was produced and received an Oscar nomination
thanks to funds from the State of Israel, which Scandar Copti now tries
to renounce,” Livnat said. “Without the state’s support, Copti
would
not be walking on the red carpet tonight.”
Culture and Sports Minister Limor Livnat criticized Copti’s remarks.
In the JPOST:
http://www.jpost.com/ArtsAndCulture/Entertainment/Article.aspx?id=170393
A
furious National Union MK Michael Ben Ari suggested that Israel
change the Cinema Law, which serves as the guidebook to fund Israeli
films.
“Support for a film should not be granted unless the
editors, producers, directors and actors sign a declaration of loyalty
to the State of Israel, its symbols and its Jewish-democratic values,”
he said.
‘Ajami’ passed over at Oscars
LOS ANGELES (JTA)
— Israel’s half-century jinx at the Oscars continued and three
Jewish-themed films were passed over, but “The Jew Hunter” took home an
award.
The Israeli entry “Ajami,” a gritty film about the Jewish-Arab
tensions in the mixed quarter of Jaffa, lost out Sunday for best
foreign language film at the Academy Awards to Argentina’s entry, “The
Secret in Their Eyes (El Secreto de Sus Ojos),” directed by Juan José
Campanell.
Three Jewish-themed films vying for the best picture nod —
“Inglourious Basterds,” “A Serious Man” and “An Education” — also
missed out. And Quentin Tarantino lost in the directing category,
despite high praise for “Inglourious Basterds,” a brutal counterfactual
fantasy in which a band of Jewish GIs scalps German soldiers and
assassinate Nazi leaders.
“Inglourious Basterds” did win the first award of the night, with
Christoph Waltz taking the Oscar for best supporting actor for his
portrayal of Hans Landa, aka “The Jew Hunter,” the terrifyingly and
hilariously meticulous German colonel charged with capturing the Jewish
soldiers.
“Oscar and Penelope, that’s an uber-Bingo,” said Waltz in his
acceptance speech, referencing the award being presented by the sultry
actress Penelope Cruz and invoking one of the Austrian actor’s classic
lines in the movie.
Co-host Steve Martin also drew laughs with a Hans Landa joke during
the night’s opening segment: “[You] played a Nazi obsessed with finding
Jews in ‘Inglourious Basterds,’ ” Martin said, as he opened his arms to
the crowd. “Well Christoph … the mother lode.”
It was the third consecutive Oscars in which an Israeli film
nominated for best foreign language film left empty-handed — the
Lebanon war-themed films “Beaufort” and “Waltz with Bashir” were
considered leading contenders before being passed over in 2008 and
2009, respectively.
“Ajami” was a joint production of two young Israeli filmmakers,
Scandar Copti, a Christian Arab, and Yaron Shani, a Jew. It was
Israel’s top drawer at the box office in the past year.
Just hours before the Oscars ceremony, Copti said he was not
representing Israel.
“I am not the Israeli national team and I do not represent Israel,”
Copti said in an interview on Israel’s Channel 2. “It is an extremely
technical thing, that’s how it works in the Oscars. It says ‘Israel’
because the funding comes from Israel. There’s a Palestinian director,
an Israeli director, Palestinian actors and Israeli actors. The film
technically represents Israel, but I don’t represent Israel.”
Culture and Sports Minister Limor Livnat criticized Copti’s remarks.
“The film ‘Ajami’ was produced and received an Oscar nomination
thanks to funds from the State of Israel, which Scandar Copti now tries
to renounce,” Livnat said. “Without the state’s support, Copti would
not be walking on the red carpet tonight.”