Docaviv, Israel’s only festival devoted entirely to documentary films, is scheduled from May 26th to June 5th at the Tel Aviv Cinematheque. The organisers have announced their selection and the opening film. 120 Israeli and international films will be screened during the fortnight.
To open the festival there will be a world premiere of The Devil Speaks: Eichmann’s Lost Confession. Directed by Yariv Mozer, this documentary shows a recording of an interview with Adolf Eichmann by a Nazi journalist in Argentina. These tapes contradict the claims he made later during his trial. The film is also in competition with 12 others for the Best Israeli Documentary Award. Its competitors include Shauly Melamed’s Mini DV, tracing the youthful days of four LGBT adults and Ran Tal’s 1341 Frames of Love and War, questioning the role of the camera, based on the archives of war reporter Micha Bar-Am. There are other competitions and selections, including the international competition, the student competition and the “Masters” selection, this year dedicated to director Nurith Aviv.
Given every year, the Best Israeli Documentary Award carries 70,000 shekels, as well as an additional 100,000 shekels towards expenses related to the Academy Awards. Since 2018 the award-winner at Docaviv is automatically qualified by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for Oscar selection. This year there is a new award, the Kadar Foundation Award, for documentaries inspired by Israel’s history and its people.
