The Israeli Academy of Film and Television did not invite Culture Minister Miki Zohar to this year’s 2024 Ophir Awards, the local version of the Oscars, the minister’s office said in a statement on Sunday.
“Culture and Sports Minister Miki Zohar did not intend to participate in the Ophir Awards this year at all due to the situation in the country,” his office said. “Minister Zohar believes that while the hostages are still languishing in Hamas captivity and the heroic IDF soldiers are risking their lives on various fronts, it is inappropriate for him to participate in such a festive ceremony.”
“The minister was also not invited to the ceremony,” it added. This will be the second year in a row that Zohar will not attend the ceremony.
Zohar did, however, recently travel to Paris to attend the opening ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics.
This year’s award ceremony will feature an emphasis on the ongoing war and the devastating Hamas attack of October 7, particularly among the short documentary films.
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In a statement to the Ynet website, the Israeli Academy of Film and Television said that the Ophir Awards “will be held in a limited and informal format and will not even be broadcast live on television.” The organization said that for the same reason, it decided not to award a Lifetime Achievement Award, for the first time in 32 years.
Sasson Gabai, left, hands an award to film director Samuel Maoz at the 2017 Ophir Awards ceremony on September 19, 2017. (Flash90)
The organization expressed hope that the ceremony will be able to return to a “normal” format in 2025.
It was unclear if the academy was suggesting the limited format was the reason for Zohar not receiving an invitation.
His absence comes amidst fierce criticism by members of the film industry over a proposed industry reform that would push government money toward commercially oriented movies rather than artistic films and documentaries that shed light on Israel’s periphery and minorities, with financing going to films based on audience numbers and ticket sales.
The proposal is seen by professionals as an effort by Israel’s right-wing government to silence liberal voices and limit the opportunities to hear non-mainstream perspectives.
People sit in the audience at the Cinemateque in Tel Aviv, March 9, 2018 (Moshe Shai/FLASH90)
In July, actors, filmmakers, directors and film industry professionals banded together to protest Zohar’s reforms.
“This reform tries to extinguish all critical discourse and discussion,” said director Joseph Cedar at an emergency conference during the Jerusalem Film Festival. “Critical films tell the truth, and in most of these critical films that comes from a lot of love for Israel.”
A little over a month ago, the Knesset’s Education, Culture and Sports Committee held a discussion on the topic, during which the chair of Israel’s Actors Organization asserted that “culture cannot be measured by ratings alone,” according to the Ynet news site.
Zohar said in the discussion that he stands behind his reforms, but added that no action will be taken “without the ‘OK’ of the legal counsel.”
Jessica Steinberg contributed to this report.
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