Jerusalem Cinematheque's Film Archive releases 75 Israeli films online

The Jerusalem Cinematheque’s Israeli Film Archive is celebrating 75 years of Israeli statehood and independence with the release of 75 Israeli films for online streaming all over the world on its platform at https://jfc.org.il/en.

The program consists of 75 Israeli films that viewers around the world can access and watch for a whole month for the price of NIS 15 per film. This program is available now to coincide with Independence Day celebrations and will continue until May 17.

The vast majority of films on this list are geo-blocked and only available for streaming in Israel on the Israeli Film Archive’s website due to various copyright agreements. But to mark Independence Day, the Film Archive has gotten permission to stream all of them, with Hebrew/English subtitles included.

Wide range of genres

The list of 75 films being made available to international viewers spans a wide range of Israeli film genres through the years. It includes such classics as Sallah (a.k.a. Sallah Shabbati), Ephraim Kishon’s 1964 film starring Chaim Topol and The Band (a.k.a. The Troupe or Ha Lahaka), Avi Nesher’s first film (1978). But it also features hidden gems, among them Israeli films that were not widely shown in Israel or abroad, such as Raphael Nussbaum’s 1960 film, Burning Sands (a.k.a. Brennender Sand).

These films are all available to watch now, thanks to the Israeli Film Archive’s work retrieving the negatives and rolls of Israeli films that have been collecting dust in the basements and backrooms of overseas distribution firms and bringing them back to Israel to restore and preserve the footage through a full digitalization process.

The program will also feature a number of films professionally restored by the archive with the guidance of either the director or cinematographer, among them Avanti Popolo by Rafi Bukai (1986), Atash (Thirst) by Tawfik Abu Wael (2004) and Uri Zohar’s Big Eyes (1973) – all of which are now available to watch in their original quality and can now be shown in theaters.

Jerusalem Cinematheque CEO Roni Mahadev-Levin said, “As part of our efforts to preserve and bring Israeli film to audiences everywhere, we will be marking this upcoming Independence Day by sharing Israeli film’s greatest treasures with the general public all over the world. The films available for streaming on the archive’s website – both the classics and lesser-knowns – tell the story of Israeli film from its beginnings to the present day and are undoubtedly a brilliant way of celebrating Israel’s independence and bringing a scent of Israeli atmosphere into viewer’s homes, however many miles away they may be.”

The Israeli Film Archive at Jerusalem’s Cinematheque is home to thousands of copies of Israeli films from all periods and genres, which it has pledged to safeguard and restore. This platform aims to unlock and share Israeli films and rare audiovisual historical footage with audiences in Israel and around the world.

Another special program to be held on Independence Day, April 26, at the Jerusalem Cinematheque at 7 p.m. will be an Israeli-themed cinema quiz, moderated by comedy director Alon Gur Aryeh (Mossad), as well as a screening of the cult comedy Halfon Hill Doesn’t Answer, starring, among others, the Gashash Ha Hiver trio, Tuvia Tzafir, Nitza Shaul and Hana Laslo. Clips from other films will be screened, as well and admission is just NIS 10.