L-am cunoscut pe regizorul israelian Yariv Mozer luna trecuta, cand a venit in Romania, invitat in cadrul Festivalului de Film Evreiesc. Mozer a fost pezent la proiectia filmului sau documentar “Ben Gurion Epilogue”.
I-am trimis lui Yariv cateva intrebari legate de filmele sale, despre tematica LGBT intalnita in cateva dintre acestea si despre viitorul sau film.
Am lasat intrebarile si raspunsurile in limba engleza, fara sa tai nimic din interviul nostru.
Yariv Mozer
- You were born in 1978, 10 years after the interview with David Ben Gurion that you used for “the frame” of your documentary. In 1968 Ben Gurion was 82 years old and he passed away 5 years later. Why Ben Gurion? Is it because he was the first prime minister of Israel? Is that because his controversy toward the peace in The Middle East? It is known that he was the first who declared that the Arab population of Israel would have equal rights with the Jewish population. It is known that he was an atheist.
Yariv Mozer: I grew up in a Zionist family and my grandparents from both sides were part of the founding generation of Israel. They were supporters of the socialist labor party and Ben-Gurion was a role model and symbol in my house. For me this film was a way to look back and seek the values of my grandparents, all reflected in Ben-Gurion’s views.
- Which is your favorite part of the documentary? Y.M.: The MOST important part in the film for me is when BG quote from the bible, what he considers to be the most significant phrase in it: v’ahavtá l’re’akhá kamókha (Love your neighbor as yourself) and BG stress it doesn’t mean only Jews.
- How did you choose the soundtrack? / Y.M: The film is constructed from Archive material only in order to be as authentic as possible, and bring BG back to life. The soundtrack is almost untouched in terms of music and score. I wanted it to be without manipulation.
- When a movie about The Dayan family?
Not my task
- When a documentary about Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres?
Again, I am not interested in doing another film on a political leader. I did this film about Ben-Gurion because I felt Israel deeply miss him in our current reality. And, by the way, there was no significant film about him for the last 40 years.
- You have directed a movie and a documentary about the LGBT population. In “Snails in the rain” you had also an acting part. How did you feel when acting?
I did this role because of the personal connection to my life and identity. I do not consider myself as a professional actor, although I will not reject another opportunity to act.
- “The invisible men” is a documentary about the gay Palestinians who live in Israel. Are you still in contact with your real people characters?
More or less, It’s already more than 6 years since I’ve completed the film, but sometimes we do get in touch.
- How was to be gay in the ‘90s in Israel? I remember that when I was in the army (1991-1993), in December 1991 I had a colleague that had a boyfriend, an officer, based in the same army base with us. Nobody knew about this, it was a big secret.
Back then I was a teenager and very deep in the closet. Israel was in the closet as well, and only at the age of 25 (2004) I felt strong enough to come out. Since than Israel went into a big revolution in accepting the LGBT community as equal. In my opinion, I felt during my visit, Romania is decedes back when it comes to the Gay community. It is very sad to see it and I hope for the Romanian people will embrace a big change in their soceity and values. This may seem as a small part of society, but it reflects the bigger picture.
- Which is your new film project?
I am releasing soon a documentary on the first private university of Israel and it’s founder. In this local story, I will expose the big change in Israel’s high education, and at the same time, the film will convey the complexity of current Israeli society.
Thank you for the wonderful questions and the attention
Surse foto: www.haaretz.com, www.amazon.com, www.journeyman.tv/, www.imdb.com, www.mozer-films.com
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