Israeli Culture and Sports Minister Miki Zohar has vowed to cut funding for the Ophiel Prize at the Israel Academy of Films after the top prize was awarded to “The Sea,” an Arabic award about a Palestinian boy who risks his life to go to the beach in Tel Aviv.
The Ophiel Award, the top Israel film honor, has been voted by the Israeli Film Society and the TV Academy, bringing together nearly 1,100 filmmakers, producers and actors. Winning the nod to Ophiel’s best film, “The Sea” automatically qualified to represent Israel in the Oscars international feature race. Director Shay Kalmeli Pollak’s “The Sea” was produced by Baher Agbariya and was Khalifa Natour’s best supporting actor and best original score for the 13-year-old Palestinian Star Muhammad Gazawi.
“The scandalous victory at the ceremony (‘sea’) sparked rage among many Israeli citizens and IDF soldiers, devoting their lives to protecting their homeland,” Zohar wrote in a statement reported in the newspaper Khalits. He said, “We will not spit out louder than the embarrassing annual Ophile awards ceremony in the face of Israeli citizens. The fact that the winning films take our lives and portray our heroic soldiers in false ways makes us safe, protect us, and not be surprised.” Funding cuts will take effect in 2026.
Last night’s Ophiel ceremony was emotionally and politically charged as many urged the Israeli government to end the war in Gaza. Almost all the winners wore black t-shirts with anti-war messages such as “children are children,” while others had photos of hostages.
In a statement issued after last night’s Ophir ceremony, Asaf Amir, chairman of the Israeli Film and Television Academy, addressed the relentless pressure from the Israeli government on the left-wing cultural sector and called for a boycott from the international community. Last week, around 4,000 entertainment industry names, including Hollywood stars such as Emma Stone and Joaquin Phoenix, signed a petition calling for a boycott of Gaza’s Israeli film agency.
“The choice of this film is an overwhelming and definitive answer as it calls for some of the international film community to boycott us in the face of attacks by Israeli government pastors on Israeli cinema,” Amir said. “We are proud that the Arabic film, born from a collaboration between Jews and Palestinian Israelis, has been chosen to represent Israel in the Oscar race.”
One institution threatened by the boycott call is the Israel Film Fund, the Israel Film Fund, the largest local fundraising source, and funds many anti-war films by the Israeli government, such as “The Sea” and “Yes” by Nadav Lapid.
The Palestinian teenager of the Sea, who won Best Actor Mohammad Gzawi, said on stage, “Every child in the world wants to give the same opportunity anywhere, live without war and dream.”
