Greenhouse Program for Jewish and Arab Women Filmmakers in I...
Greenhouse Program for Jewish and Arab Women Filmmakers in Israel
At the beginning of 2014, the New Fund for Cinema and Television (NFCT) decided to replicate the huge success of its regional Greenhouse model within Israel through a new program targeting Jewish and Arab women documentary filmmakers. At a time when intolerance and discrimination are unfortunately on the rise, the NFCT recognized an urgent need to foster mutual understanding and to build bridges between the Jewish and Arab communities. The NFCT has chosen to focus on women filmmakers because women in Israel still face significant social and economic barriers to becoming successful documentary film directors and producers, especially women from vulnerable and marginalized groups, such as women from Israel's Arab minority. On the other hand, women are extremely effective in educating and inspiring their surroundings, community, family, and children.
The program brings together each year 12-16 talented female filmmakers from diverse religious, ethnic and cultural backgrounds, and supports them in the development of compelling documentaries that amplify women’s voices about important contemporary and social issues. The one-year program includes three 5-day residential workshops spanning a period of eight months.
The participating Jewish and Arab filmmakers are enriched by the cross-cultural dialogue, cooperation and community-building fostered through the program, which profoundly influences their work. Each of the participants receives individual and continuing support from one of three dedicated mentors who are themselves leading figures in the field of documentary filmmaking in Israel. The workshops enable the filmmakers to deepen their understanding and respect for each other and build bridges among women filmmakers committed to peace and social change.
At the end of each cycle, the NFCT organizes a pitching forum during which the filmmakers present their projects (orally and with a trailer) in front of leading Israeli commissioning editors and producers, with the intent of aiding them in the process of raising the necessary funds to create their films. Once the films are prepared they will be screened in front of a wide range of audiences in Israel and abroad - film festivals, TV channels and educational systems.
To date, there have been four cycles of the program and the fifth is currently underway. The program has so far yielded six completed films, one of which – Wall, by Moran Ifergan, won Best Documentary Award at the prestigious 2017 Docaviv IFF in Tel Aviv (click on the film's title to watch the trailer). A Perfect Housewife by Jane Bibi won the Jury Award at the 2018 DocAviv IFF. The program has been supported so far by the Dobkin Family Foundation, Mifal Hapyis (Israel's Lottery), the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, a UK-based anonymous Charitable Trust, The US Embassy TLV, Tisch Illumination Fund NY, The Jewish Women's Foundation of the Greater Palm Beaches and EMID – the Euro-Mediterranean Institute for Inter-Civilization Dialog.