The Israel Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

in three cities: Los Angeles, New York and Miami. It is the largest showcase of Israeli cinema in the United States. Founded in 1982 by Meir Fenigstein, a former drummer for the Israeli rock band,

Kaveret Kaveret ( he, כוורת, lit. "beehive"), also known as Poogy ( he, פוגי, nickname of band drummer Meir Fenigstein chosen for their performances abroad), was an Israeli Rock music, rock band, which operated originally from 1973 to 1976. Repr ...

, the festival is the premier showcase for new work from Israeli independent filmmakers. The festival comprises official sections for Israeli dramatic and documentary films, both feature-length films and short films, and television dramas. The festival is a production of IsraFest Foundation, Inc., a

501(c)(3) nonprofit organization A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of the 29 types of 50 ...

based in Los Angeles whose mission is to enrich the American vision of Israeli life and culture through the medium of film, and to foster an intercultural dialogue through conversations with visiting Israeli artists. The festival is credited with helping Israeli films get Hollywood exposure. Each year, the festival hosts a Gala Awards Dinner at the

Beverly Hilton The Beverly Hilton is a hotel located on an property at the intersection of Wilshire and Santa Monica boulevards in Beverly Hills, California. The Beverly Hilton has hosted many awards shows, charity benefits, and entertainment and motion pic ...

with a ''Hollywood Salute to Israel'' and bestows coveted IFF Awards to individuals for Acting, Producing, Visionary and Lifetime Achievements. On October 20, 2010, IFF Awards were presented to

Richard Dreyfuss Richard Stephen Dreyfuss (; born Dreyfus; October 29, 1947) is an American actor. He is known for starring in popular films during the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, including ''American Graffiti'' (1973), ''Jaws'' (1975), ''Close Encounters of the T ...

(Career Achievement Award),

Ryan Kavanaugh Ryan Kavanaugh (born 1974) is an American film financier. He co-founded and served as CEO of Relativity Media, where he brokered deals between Wall Street investors and major film studios. He credited his risk-assessment algorithm with Relati ...

(Outstanding Achievement in Film Award),

Jon Landau Jon Landau (born May 14, 1947) is an American music critic, manager, and record producer. He has worked with Bruce Springsteen in all three capacities. He is the head of the nominating committee for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and recei ...

(Visionary Award) and

Avi Lerner Avinoam Lerner ( he, אבי לרנר; born 13 October 1947) is an Israeli-American film producer, primarily of American action movies. Lerner is the founder and CEO of Millennium Films. Life and career Avi Lerner was born in Haifa, Israel), on ...

(Lifetime Achievement Award). The Israel Film Festival has distinguished itself from other festivals by being a traveling event that has been held in four major American cities: New York, Miami, Chicago and Los Angeles. At the 2018 Israel Film Festival in Beverly Hills,

Yossi Dina Yossi Dina (Hebrew: יוסי דינה; born August 21, 1954) is an Israeli pawnbroker, businessman, entrepreneur, and reality television personality. Biography Yossi Dina, the entrepreneur and TV personality, was born in Israel on August 21, 19 ...

stepped on stage and tried to physically remove film producer

Jason Blum Jason Ferus Blum "Jason Ferus Blum was born in LA in 1969 to Shirley Neilsen, an art professor, and Irving Blum, an art dealer" (; born 1969) is an American film and television producer. He is the founder and CEO of Blumhouse Productions, whic ...

while delivering his speech.

Notes

External links

* * Variety articl

* Variety articl

* The Hollywood Reporter articl

Cinema of Israel Israeli-American culture in California Israeli-American culture in New York City Israeli-American history Film festivals in New York City Film festivals in Los Angeles Film festivals in Florida Film festivals established in 1982 1982 establishments in the United States {{US-film-festival-stub