The Israeli film industry is furious because of the proposed funding changes – Variety



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Representatives of the Israeli film industry are furious about the bill that would drastically change the way government funds are distributed, amidst controversies over movies, like award-winning Foxtrot, which according to politicians portray Israel under a bad day. 19659002] Up to now, government support for film projects has been distributed through a series of independent film funds. But a series of amendments to the Israeli film law, proposed by conservative minister of culture Miri Regev last week, calls for the establishment of a select group of readers and subordinates to his ministry. According to Regev, the film's funds would be forced to hire 70% of their own script drives from this organization.

The bill has had its first reading in the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, and could be pbaded from the beginning. the week. But in the hearings that took place before the vote, industry representatives expressed disgust and anger at the proposed changes.

On Monday, members of the Israeli Guild of Directors stormed a hearing on the bill. Assaf Amir, chairman of the Association of Israeli Producers, said lawmakers were seeking to pbad a bill "that will destroy the film industry, and tell us that it will save the film industry. "

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A representative of the Israel Institute of Democracy also spoke out against the proposed legislation, stating that it would create "political and government intervention" and could lead to "l '. self-censorship and restrictions on the freedom of expression ".

On Sunday, Katriel Schory – the longtime executive director of the Israeli Film Fund, who was honored at the Berlinale earlier this year – slammed proposals at a Knesset meeting. Schory warned that if the changes were to be approved, Israel could end up with "an image like [autocratic Turkish leader Recep] Erdogan", which would scare outside investors.

Regev, who served as Minister of Culture since 2015, has long been openly and harshly criticizing films and projects that she disapproves of. Some of his most outspoken critics were directed to Samuel Maoz 's "Foxtrot" last year, which won the Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival and was selected for the first time. Oscar in a foreign language. Irritated by the representation of the Israeli army film, Regev vowed last year that films like "Foxtrot", which "showed contempt for the state and its symbols … and were playing in the hands of our enemies, "would no longer receive government funding

Indeed, Regev said last week that his proposals to reform the film industry do not go as far as she would like. "If I were at the beginning of my term as minister," she said last week, "I had just closed all the film funds and replaced them with a National Film Institute."

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