The Israeli Film Council announced Monday it will hold an emergency session following the controversy over the anti-Israel film ‘No Other Land.’ The meeting will reconsider the scoring system for film festivals representing Israel internationally. The film by Israeli filmmakers Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor—which presents what critics call a blood libel against Israeli soldiers and attributes ‘calculated mass killing’ of Gaza residents to Israel—won the Special Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival last week, sparking widespread public outcry.
The council said in a statement: ‘As is well known, the State of Israel is a democracy that fiercely protects freedom of expression and creation, and the Film Council encourages the existence of diverse and critical voices. However, the film ‘No Other Land’ crosses a red line and constitutes a serious defamation of IDF soldiers, who defend with their bodies all citizens of Israel. The fact that the film relies on anonymous interviewees raises serious questions about its credibility.’
The statement continued: ‘We regret the method by which creators exploit Israeli creative freedom, yet choose to slander the state and its soldiers in exchange for prizes and funding from hostile international sources, while hurting public sentiment and the memory of the victims of October 7. The council will continue to support quality, constructive, and diverse Israeli cinema, but will condemn any exploitation of cinematic creation to harm the state and IDF soldiers.’
At a time when Israel and the IDF face serious accusations and lies in the international arena, the film by the two directors—presenting what critics describe as a blood libel against Israeli fighters in the Gaza Strip—won the Special Jury Prize in the official competition of the 83rd Venice Film Festival, one of the world’s most important cinema stages.
Even before the award, the film received an exceptional embrace in Venice. According to Euronews, at the end of the premiere screening, approximately 24.5 minutes of applause were recorded—the longest documented at the festival. During the ovation, PLO and Lebanese flags were also waved in the hall. Thus, serious allegations against Israeli soldiers, this time coming from Israelis and presented by Israeli filmmakers, received a massive international platform.