American Film Market Dailies

Sunda, thank you for such a wonderful introduction!

GOOD EVENING My dear friends, sponsors, filmmakers, and distinguished guests… WELCOME to the 33^rd ISRAEL FILM FESTIVAL in Los Angeles. It looks like I will be doing this for the next 100 years!

Over the next two weeks we are excited to showcase more than 30 Israeli films, thought provoking documentaries, popular television shows and short films. This is the very best of Israeli filmmaking and the largest showcase in the United States.

I started this Festival with only six films in a single theatre. Tonight, you join ONE MILLION people who have seen more than ONE THOUSAND Israeli films over the past three decades.

24 filmmakers, from Israel will be joining us for Q&A sessions to share their work during the first week of the Festival. Their films will be screening at two theatres—the Fine Arts Theatre in Beverly Hills and the Laemmle Town Center 5 in Encino.  You can learn all about them on our new website at israelfilmfestival.com!

Tonight, we are pleased to honor two remarkable people—ARTHUR COHN, the winner of six Academy Awards, who will receive the 2019 IFF Lifetime Achievement Award. His latest film, The Etruscan Smile, will screen at the Fine Arts Theatre – Tomorrow at 5 PM and ARTHUR will be there to introduce the film. Don’t miss it!

And SHARON HAREL-COHEN, will receive the 2019 IFF Achievement In Film Award. She is the producer of more than 50 films—including the one we are about to watch tonight, Incitement.

The dream of the Israel Film Festival is still growing, thanks to the loyal support of our family of sponsors. I would like to thank the Premier and Official Sponsors and we are grateful to all of the sponsors who appeared on the screen tonight:

• The Adelson Family Foundation - Dr. Miriam and Sheldon Adelson
• InSync PLUS – my dear friend Smitty
• Lynne Siegel, Publisher of the Hollywood Reporter
• Millennium Media – Avi Lerner and Jonathan Yunger
• Campbell Grobman Films
• The Rabinovich Foundation
• Screen International
• Bank Leumi USA
• American Associates of Ben-Gurion University
• The Israel Film Fund
• BCR Finance Corp & Go Media

I want to personally thank everyone who’s helped bring our 33^rd Festival to life:

Our 2019 Festival Chairman, Mr. Rick Rosen.

Our hardworking festival team: Iris, Or and Inbar in our Israel office. For the Los Angeles office: Ori,  Chesley, Rachael, Emily, Gia, and Danielle.

Thanks also to our Opening Night producer Hanna from Bentop, Mikael from SHILOH’S RESTAURANT & CATERING, and a special thank you to Smitty at InSyncPLUS’s for our festival poster and trailer design.

I want to send heartfelt thanks to my wife Jessie and my children—Rachel, Simon, Yalhi, and Dylan—I love and miss you all!

Finally, ladies and gentlemen, I have some very exciting news to share. It has always been a dream of mine to announce an award that brings the American and Israeli film industries together. Tonight, that dream becomes a reality as DCR Finance Corp, and Go Media, from Atlanta Georgia—join forces to underwrite $175,000 in post-production funding for our Audience Choice Award winner at our closing night event on November 26th. This is the LARGEST AWARD in the Festival’s history!

I’d like to invite ADI COHEN of DCR Finance Corp and WAYNE OVERSTREET of Go Media to tell you more about it. Please give them a hand!

Thank you!