Hagai Levi's 'The Affair' wins Golden Globe
Showtime series co-created by Israeli director takes home honor for best television drama; Israeli film 'Gett: The Trial Of Viviane Amsalem' loses best foreign language film award to Russia's 'Leviathan.'
The winner for best drama series, "The Affair," was co-created by Israeli director, producer and writer Hagai Levi. It tells the story of an affair between two married people told from the different perspectives of the man and the woman.
It beat out four longer-running and well-loved series - "Downton Abbey", "Game of Thrones", "The Good Wife" and "House of Cards."
"It does feel like a real whirlwind and it does feel like we just got on the air," the show's other co-creator, Sarah Treem, said backstage at the awards show.
Ruth Wilson, one of the stars of "The Affair", picked up the award for best actress in a drama series.
Israeli film ''Gett: The Trial Of Viviane Amsalem" lost out in the best foreign language film category to Russia's "Leviathan."
Despite the disappointment, "Gett" creators Ronit and Shlomi Elkabetz cherished the moments they spent at the event at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. "The event and the experience, it was just wonderful," Ronit Elkabetz told Ynet.
"It would have been great to win. The film's achievements are amazing. But I just wanted to enjoy the moment. I was definitely excited walking on the red carpet."
Amazon.com Inc's win for "Transparent" marked the first time an online streaming service took home a Golden Globe for best series. The show, about a transgender woman who comes out to her three adult children, won for best comedy series.
Its star, veteran American Jewish actor Jeffrey Tambor, also took home a statue for best actor in a comedy series, giving Amazon wins in both of the categories for which it was nominated.
"Transparent" received wide critical acclaim for its handling of groundbreaking subject matter and has been a breakthrough series for Amazon, whose original programming had struggled to find an audience early on. Few consumers knew the largest US online retailer was in the TV business.
"It was a huge risk," Jill Soloway, the creator of "Transparent" and the daughter of a transgender parent herself, told reporters backstage. "The way Amazon is distributing it is transformative and the show is transformative."
"Transparent" bested HBO's "Girls" and "Silicon Valley", The CW's "Jane the Virgin" and Netflix Inc's "Orange is the New Black" to win the top comedy series award.
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which hands out the Golden Globes, also honored new series "Jane the Virgin" and "Fargo."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
