Israel Film Council Sets Urgent Festival-Scoring Review After ‘Naza’

The Israel Film Council will hold an urgent meeting to reconsider how it scores film festivals representing Israel internationally after the documentary ‘Naza’ won the Special Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival. The Council said Israel safeguards freedom of expression and artistic creation, but called the film a grave act of defamation against IDF soldiers and a red line. It questioned the film’s credibility because its interviewees are anonymous, while promising continued support for constructive and diverse Israeli cinema. ‘Naza,’ by Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor, draws on three years of interviews with 24 anonymous people presented as Israeli soldiers or intelligence personnel.