"Asia" Wins the Ophir. Let's Talk Israel and Oscar...

by Nathaniel R

Alena Yiv and Shira Haas as mother and daughter in ASIA

The Ophir Awards were held today in Israel with Asia emerging as the winner so it will now represent Israel at the Oscars. Based on buzz we've heard on this mother/daughter drama, which caused a stir at the Tribeca Film Festival earlier this year we've added it to the actual Oscar predictions and our letterboxd list tracking the contenders. Asia is a mother/daughter drama starring Alena Yiv as the mother and the brilliant Shira Haas (Unorthodox) as the daughter (they both won Ophir Awards for this) so we will see it the first chance we get. You can see a full list of the nominees and winners at this freshly updated post.

But let's talk about Israel at the Oscars. They hold the distinction of being (by far) the most nominated country that's never won. They used to be in a tight race for that frustrating honor but in the past seven years Poland won with Ida and then Mexico with Roma so now the title is theirs alone. Their nearest rival is a distant one (Belgium has 7 nominations). More on Israeli classics and Oscar stats after the jump...

ISRAEL'S OSCAR STATS
Submitting since 1964
52 Total Submissions 
10 Nominations (and 1 Additional Finalist)
0 Wins 

Topol headlined Israeli's first Oscar submission and first nominee SALLAH

KEY SUBMISSIONS 

• Sallah (1964) Nominee  This Golden Globe winner made Topol internationally famous. He was later Oscar nominated for Fiddler on the Roof (1971)
• The Policeman (1971) Nominee
• I Love You Rosa (1972) Nominee  Three time nominee Moshé Mizrahi's first submission. It also played in competition in Cannes
• The House on Chelouche Street (1973) Nominee  an immigrant family drama
• Operation Thunderbolt (1977) Nominee  an action drama about terrorist hijacking and Jewish hostages
• Lemon Popsicle (1978) This one  \about three friends in the 1950s is also sometimes called "Going All the Way" in English territories. It was nominated for the Golden Globe but Oscar passed.
• Moments (1979) A menage a trois drama. This marked the first time Israel sent a female director, Michal Bat-Adam (the wife of Israel's most successful director -- in Oscar statistic terms we mean -- Moishe Mizrahi). It was her debut behind the camera. She had previously co-starred in all three of her husband's Oscar nominated submissions: I Love You Rosa, The House on Chelouche Street,  and the French winner Madame Rosa. Israel sent her again as a director the following year for the mother daughter drama The Thin Line
• Beyond the Walls (1984) Nominee  a prison drama
• The Summer of Aviya (1988) A mother daughter drama. Winner of a dual Silver Bear at Berlinale for its actresses, but Oscar passed.
• Yana's Friends (1999) an arthouse hit in the US and a prize winner at various festivals but Oscar passed.

Lior Ashkenazi and Ronit Elkabetz in the brilliant "Late Marriage"

• Late Marriage (2001) My personal all-time favourite Israeli movie starring two great actors Lior Ashkenazi and Ronit Elkabetz. Sadly, Oscar passed.
• Beaufort (2007) Nominee - this was a last minute submission when The Band's Visit (the most successful Israeli film of all time in US release) was deemed ineligible because the movie had too much English.
• Waltz With Bashir (2008) Nominee and the only animated film ever nominated for Best International Film
• Ajami (2009) Nominee
• Footnote (2011) Nominee
• Fill the Void (2012) A festival hit and Independent Spirit nominee but Oscar passed.
• Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem (2014) This film written/directed/starring the late great actress Ronit Elkabetz won considerable buzz and a Golden Globe nomination but Oscar passed.
• Foxtrot (2017) Finalist

Most Frequently Submitted Directors for Best International Feature Film

1. Joseph Cedar (3 submissions, 2 nominated films)
2. Savi Gabison (3 submissions, none of which were nominated)
3. Moshe Mizrahi (2 submissions, 2 nominated films... in addition to that stat, though it wasn't for Israel, he also had a winning film submitted by France called Madame Rosa which is being remade this Oscar season as The Life Ahead with Sophia Loren) 
4. Ephraim Kishon (2 submissions, 2 nominated films)
5. Ari Folman (2 submissions, 1 nominated film)
6. Michal Bat-Adam (2 submissions, neither of which were nominated)

Most Oscar-Honored Israeli Artists

1. Natalie Portman (3 nominations, 1 win in acting)
2. Moshe Mizrahi (3 nominations, 1 win in Foreign Film*)
3. Ephraim Kishon, Joseph Cedar (2 nominations each in Foreign Film*)

* We know these aren't "official" nominations since it's actually the country and the director nominated but it SHOULD be official nominations since it's people who make movies, not countries.

No other Israeli artists have been nominated multiple times though two more have won competitive Oscars: Guy Nattiv for Best Short (for Skin) and Niv Adiri for Best Sound (for Gravity)

Comments

[Abe]

I've seen six of Israel's nominees. I'm missing all four from the 60s. I was so wowed by both Fill the Void and Gett and I'm sad that neither got nominated. Asia is very good and I imagine that, given Haas' popularity, may be able to get in for International Feature.

[cal roth]

I love The French Connection and I love Hackman in it, but Topol should have won for Fiddler on the Roof.

[Rama]

Let’s talk about Palestine and its lands that Israel stole.

[Peggy Sue]

Team Shira Haas here.

I can't think of Ronit Elkabetz without choking. Her performance in Gett is for the ages.

[Owl]

I watched a lot of Hebrew-language films when I was learning the language but oftentimes I forgot I am there to learn the language because the stories were more compelling.

Meduzot (Jellyfish, 2007) was a wonderful film of cross purposes, unfulfilment and finding connection with the sea. Touching without emotional manipulation and grandstanding.

Some films stay longer with me even after its audience stopped talking about it, and Ahot Zara (Foreign Sister, 2000) is that kind of film. The quietude, long takes, performances, and the free wheeling conversations were like segments from Mike Leigh's films or any cinematic tradition that eschew 'acting'. It was spontaneous, sometimes awkward, like real life. But what wonderful exploration of kindredness beyond race, age and social backgrounds. It didn't do much box office but the story and the film stayed with me for many years.

I like The Band's Visit a lot and I remembered the controversy about disqualifying it because of the frequent use of English. But if you look at the context of the film, it was really about trying to communicate and English is the foreign language used by culturally different strangers to communicate. It would have been rad to have that film nominated if only to show that English is the foreign language in the story. I saw the musical on Broadway and for that run, the film's star Sasson Gabai played the non-singing role of Tawfiq and adding a meta-level of verisimilitude to the proceedings. But Katrina Lenk, wow, my kind of woman.

Speaking of visitors, I too really really like Ushpizin (Sukkot Guests, 2004). It's always great cinema for me when the performers are non-actors and in Ushpizin the easy banter and rapport between real-life couple Shuli Rand and Michal is like eavesdropping on the domestic lives of two people who were impoverished and cannot conceive a child. Shuli Rand would win the Ophir lead actor award that year.

I also like Waltz with Bashir a lot: moody, reflective, and discursively violent. I hope I'll be able to see Asia too. Shira Haas is destined to be a great actress.

[UA]

Owl - before he was a born again ultra religious Jew, Shuli Rand was Israel's most promising young actor. Against all odds he has maintained a rather successful acting (and musical) career. So he was not in any way a non actor. His Wife Michal was. Since according to Haredi Doctrine he was not allowed to have any interaction with women who were not immediate members of his own family, it was a given that the role of the wife could only be played by his real life spouse.
Alas, for the past few years they've been involved in an extremely nasty and bitter - as well as highly public - War of the Roses kind of familial dispute. In their media appearances he comes off better, but then again, he is a far better actor than her.

[Owl]

@UA
Thanks for that perspective and I stand corrected on Shuli Rand. I remembered reading about the non-actors in the film and mistakenly thought Shuli has no acting/performing experience.

Sorry to hear about their very public familial tussle/war. It's painful when something domestic becomes public.

Thanks for the heads-up on שולי רנד 's musical career -- I listened to his stuff online. He sings/speaks his way to songs and I slightly prefer his voice to that of Hanan Ben Ari. Now I will spend the weekend browsing Shuli Rand's music stuff online.