Jerusalem Film Festival

Academy Award and Golden Globe winners Helen Mirren and Oliver Stone are set to headline the celebratory 40th edition of the Jerusalem Film Festival, which kicks off Thursday, July 13 in Israel with the special opening night screening of Golda, starring Mirren as Israel's historic Prime Minister Golda Meir.   Directed by Academy Award winning Israeli filmmaker Guy Nattiv, Golda follows the intensely dramatic and high-stakes responsibilities and decisions that Prime Minister Meir, also known as the Iron Lady of Israel, faced during the 1973 Yom Kippur War.

There is something fascinating about combining the old and the new in one go. Such was the experience at this year’s Jerusalem Film Festival, which took place mainly at the modern cinematheque overlooking the ancient city.

For over 10 days, the Jerusalem Film Festival celebrated cinema with a program which made room for the best films coming from Cannes, Berlin, Sundance and San Sebastian. Several premieres played to full houses with some reserved for new Israeli films, which competed for the prestigious awards that are the jewel of this event.