The Academy's shortlist announcements brought mixed news for Israeli cinema Thursday, as the controversial documentary "The Bibi Files" advanced while the country's International Feature Film entry failed to make the cut.
"The Bibi Files" features investigation footage of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his wife, and son. Channel 13 investigative journalist Raviv Drucker serves among the documentary's producer. The interrogation videos featured in the film were recorded by the Israel Police between 2016 and 2018, prior to the formal filing of corruption charges against Netanyahu.
The film also shows Netanyahu vehemently refuting claims that he approved regulations benefiting Israeli media mogul Shaul Elovitch. The prime minister repeatedly and dramatically labeled one of his senior aides, Nir Hefetz, a liar for making such assertions. Other witnesses allege that Elovitch reciprocated the supposed favors by allowing Netanyahu to directly influence his family's coverage on the Israeli news website Walla.
Tom Nesher's "Close to Me," Israel's official submission for International Feature consideration, did not advance in the competition. The film, which claimed this year's Ophir Award – Israel's highest film honor – explores a young woman's journey through grief following her brother's death, paralleling Nesher's own experience of losing her brother Ari in a fatal car accident.
Meanwhile, the Palestinian-Norwegian production "I Have No Other Land," co-created by two Israeli filmmakers, also maintained its position in the race.
Israel's most recent recognition in the International Feature Film category came in 2012 with Joseph Cedar's "Footnote." The Academy will reveal final Oscar nominations on Jan. 17, 2025, with the ceremony set for March 2 at Hollywood's Dolby Theatre.
