The ceremony will be national and official and will be called “Israel Film Awards,” under which prizes totaling one million shekels will be awarded, according to the announcement released by the ministry.
Unlike the Academy Awards ceremony, the winning film will not be sent to compete at the Oscars in Hollywood, since that option belongs to the Academy. Officials at the Ministry of Culture said they did not even try to obtain that possibility.
The ceremony will be held for the first time this coming Hanukkah and films whose production was completed in the past Hebrew year may compete; they may be put forward for consideration by the public or by the creators — and will be chosen by a panel of judges, whose members have not yet been published.
Only citizens of the State of Israel and permanent residents will be eligible to compete. Prizes will be awarded in 10 categories — feature film, documentary, animation, directing, screenplay, actor, actress, cinematography, soundtrack and a lifetime achievement award. Each winner will receive 100,000 shekels (about $34,400).
“The new national ceremony will effectively become the ‘Israeli Oscar’ with the aim of strengthening and promoting the film industry in the country,” said Culture Minister Miki Zohar. “We want to encourage and give a platform to cinema that represents the strong Israeli spirit and tells our story here in the country. We have great cinema, and we are here to give it a stage and to help the flourishing and development of Israeli culture.”
The Ministry of Culture is calling for submissions, which will be accepted on the ministry’s website until October 30.
The idea to establish a state film awards ceremony arose after in recent years the Ophir Awards ceremonies — according to past and present culture ministers such as Chili Tropper and now Miki Zohar — became a political and non-diverse stage that harms the recognition due to Israeli creators. This year, too, the Ophir ceremony sparked controversy with harsh statements about the conduct in Gaza, when Zohar announced he would stop funding after claiming it was “a shameful ceremony that spits on soldiers.”