On March 2, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) announced the winners for the 97th annual Academy Awards in a star-studded ceremony in Los Angeles.
“No Other Land,” a film made by an Israeli-Palestinian collective of four filmmakers — Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal and Basel Adra — emerged as a winner in the Best Documentary Feature Film category.
Although the film boasts a flawless review aggregate among international critics, the documentary was criticized by many in Israel over its one-sided portrayal of the alleged struggles experienced by Arab residents of the West Bank. The acceptance speech of the winning filmmakers was also strongly criticized in Israel for failing to mention Hamas or the October 7 atrocities.
The contentious documentary is also not the first win or nomination ever to be clinched by Israeli filmmakers. Many talented film professionals have gotten the coveted nod, including several winners.
In honor of the 97th Oscars, ISRAEL21c has compiled a list of the best Israeli moments at the Academy Awards through the years.
Natalie Portman
Prior to Gal Gadot becoming Israel’s most recognized actress, Jerusalem-born Natalie Portman was the one people in Israel were pinning their hopes on when it came to international film fame.
Unfortunately, the “Star Wars” star is not as vocal a supporter of the Jewish state as Gadot. Nevertheless, Portman is the only Israeli ever to win a Best Actress Oscar. In 2011, the actress won the coveted golden statue for her portrayal of troubled ballerina Nina Sayers in the drama “Black Swan.”
Gal Gadot
Speaking of Gadot, she and her “Snow White” costar Rachel Zegler presented the award for Best Visual Effects at this year’s ceremony. The two presenters barely looked at each other among rumors of a feud between the two actresses. Zegler made a host of anti-Israel posts on her social media following the October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks, placing the blame for the atrocities on the Jewish state.
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Things looked a lot rosier the first time Gadot ever presented at the Oscars. In 2018, fresh off the massive success of “Wonder Woman,” Gadot presented the award for Best Makeup and Hairstyling along with actor Armie Hammer, wearing a sparkling silver Givenchy gown.
Moshe Mizrahi
In 1978, Moshe Mizrahi became the first Israeli director whose feature film won an Academy Award. He won for “Madame Rosa,” even though he made the film while living in France.
Mizrahi was born in 1931 to a Jewish family in Egypt, studied filmmaking in Paris and eventually moved to Israel. Different cultures he experienced throughout his life led him to adopt the 1975 novel The Life Before Us for the big screen.
The book, written by Romain Gary under the pseudonym Emile Ajar, tells the story of a French Jewish Holocaust survivor and a former prostitute who runs a boarding school for children of prostitutes, many of whom are Muslim and immigrants from Algeria. At the time of its release, the film was viewed through the prism of the Israel-Arab conflict.
Chaim Topol
Born in 1935 in pre-state Israel, Chaim Topol became the first Israeli actor nominated for an Oscar, when in 1972 he clinched the nod for Best Actor for his performance in “Fiddler on the Roof.” Topol ultimately lost to Gene Hackman, who won the award for his role in “The French Connection.”
In 1964, Topol starred as Sallah Shabati in the Israeli-made film of the same name, which tells the story of Mizrachi Jews arriving in the newly founded Jewish state. “Sallah Shabati” became the first Israeli film nominated for an Oscar in the Best Foreign Language Film category.
Guy Nattiv
In 2019, filmmaker Guy Nattiv became the second Israeli director, after Moshe Mizrahi, to win an Academy Award. His short film “Skin” won an Oscar for Best Live Action Short Film at the 91st Academy Awards. The short film, which was later adapted as a full-length feature, details a race-based gang conflict that begins with an innocuous encounter at a supermarket.
Niv Adiri
Israeli sound engineer Niv Adiri has had quite an illustrious career. He worked on some of the biggest films of the past couple of decades, including “V for Vendetta,” “Slumdog Millionaire,” “Bohemian Rhapsody” and many others. He was nominated for an Oscar only two years ago for his work on “Belfast.”
But the biggest achievement of his career so far came in 2014, when he won the Best Sound Mixing Oscar for his work on “Gravity,” which won six other Academy Awards at the same ceremony.
Hofit Golan
Although this final entry may not be as obvious as the rest, it is equally, if not more, important. Israeli actress and influencer Hofit Golan attended last year’s Academy Awards wearing a Yaniv Persy gown with the names of all the hostages still held in Gaza.
It was one of the very few tributes made to the hostages, or Israelis in general, at the ceremony, which took place mere months after the deadly October 7 Hamas attacks.
