BETHLEHEM

90 Minuten – bei Abpfiff Frieden
September 11, 2014
HAPPY HOUR
February 1, 2015

BETHLEHEM

Director: Yuval Adler

Screenplay: Yuval Adler & Ali Waked
Director of Photography: Yaron Scharf
Starring: Shadi Mar’i, Tsahi Halevi, Haitham Omari
Producers: Steve Hudson, Sonja Ewers, Diana Elbaum, Talia Kleinhendler
Production Companies: GRINGO films GmbH (Germany), Entre Chien Et Loup (Belgium), Pie Films Ltd. (Israel)
In cooperation with: Israeli Film Fund, the Jerusalem Film Fund, the Film und Medienstiftung NRW and RealFiction Filmverleih
International Sales: WestEnd

Genre: Political Thriller
Status: Completed
World Premiere: Venice Film Festival 2013
Awards: Winner Venice Days / Giornate Degli Autori – Venice Film Festival 2013
Best Film, Best Actor – Haifa Film Festival 2013
Best Film, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Editing, Best Supporting Actor, Best Casting – Israeli Film Prize (12 nominations) 2013
Israeli Submission to the 2014 Oscars®/ Best Foreign Film

Bethlehem tells the story of Razi, an Israeli secret service officer, and Sanfur, a vulnerable teenager – who happens to be the younger brother of a leading Palestinian militant.

As an Israeli informer in the West Bank, Sanfur’s life is constantly at risk, and Razi has developed a protective, fatherly relationship to him that’s steeped in genuine affection. Caught between the impossible demands that both Razi and his family make on him, however, Sanfur is forced to betray both sides – with appalling consequences.

Bethlehem was jointly written by Israeli director Yuval Adler and Palestinian journalist Ali Waked – with members of both the Israeli secret services and the Palestinian Al-Aqsa Brigades collaborating on the screenplay. The result is an authentic, gripping film that foresakes the moral high ground to look at the real emotional cost of political violence and unending conflict.