Two Israeli films have mad the “shortlist” (pun intended) of ten finalists for the 2015 Live Action Short Film Oscar and they were both directed, at least in part, by women. The two movies are “Aya, ” by Oded Binnun and Mihal Brezis, and “Summer Vacation” by Tal Granit and Sharon Maymon.
The 10 movies were chosen from 141 nominees by the Academy’s short films and feature animation branch.
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Aya is one of 15 collaborations between Binnun and Brezsis. 40 minutes long, the movie is named for the title character who is waiting at the airport to pick someone who had just landed, only to find herself collecting a total stranger, Thomas, a Scandinavian music critic judge who came Israel for the Rubinstein Piano Competition.
Thomas mistakenly believes that Aya is the driver sent to pick him up.
Aya, fascinated by his presence and the randomness of their meeting, does not reveal the mistake and instead decides to give Thomas a ride.
Mihal Brezis and Oded Binnun are graduates of the Sam Spiegel Film Institute in Jerusalem, Israel. Their Diploma films’ “Sabath Entertainment” and “Tuesday’s Women” were screened and awarded in numerous festivals world-wide, and acquired by broadcasters such as the Sundance Channel and Canal+.
Their recent film “Lost Paradise” has received over 20 prizes in international festivals. The duo has also directed music videos and commercials together.
Currently they are developing a feature length film with the support of the Israeli Film Fund.
At 22 minutes in length, Summer Vacation is about sea, sun, island, a family on vacation and Yuval who just wants to get the heck out of there.
Tal Granit was born in Tel Aviv in 1969 and graduated from the Sam Spiegel Film and Television School in Jerusalem, with distinction. Granit is also a graduate of the Screenwriter School and studied acting at Yoram Levinstein’s Acting Studio.
Sharon Maymon was born in Ramle in 1973 and is a graduate of the Camera Obscura Film School. Maymon co-wrote the feature film A Matter of Size (2009, 90 mins) with Danny Cohen-Solal and co-directed it with Erez Tadmor.
