Ajami
Action,
Drama,
IdentityScandar Copti,
Yaron Shani
Scandar Copti,
Yaron Shani
Kino International
Ghassan Ashkar,
Moshe Yerushalmi,
Tamar Yerushalmi,
Sigal Harel,
Eran Naim,
Ranin Karim,
Hilal Kabob,
Shahir Kabaha,
Scandar Copti,
Ibrahim Frege,
Abu George Shibli,
Youssef Sahwani,
Elias Saba,
Nisrine Rihan,
Fouad Habash
Synopsis
Set in the Jaffa neighborhood of the same name, Ajami is an intense crime drama about the Jews, Muslims, and Christians who live there. Among the central characters is an Israeli police detective trying to trace his missing brother, an illegal Palestinian worker struggling to finance his mother’s life-saving surgery. His story intersects with that of an affluent Palestinian who is in love with a Jewish girl. As their stories intersect and their worlds collide, viewers are exposed to violent and tragic consequences.
Co-directed by Yaron Shani, an Israeli Jew, and Scandar Copti, an Israeli Arab, Ajami is both gritty and dramatic. The directors cast only nonprofessional actors and filmed the story in sequence, without a traditional script. The effect created was a raw and realistic feeling in this powerful film.
Awards
Wins
2010, Grand Prize, Boulder International Film Festival2009, Best Film, Awards of the Israeli Film Academy2009, Best Director: Scandar Copti and Yaron Shani, Awards of the Israeli Film Academy2009, Best Screenplay: Scandar Copti and Yaron Shani, Awards of the Israeli Film Academy2009, Best Editing: Scandar Copti and Yaron Shani, Awards of the Israeli Film Academy 2009, Best Music, Awards of the Israeli Film Academy2009, Golden Camera – Special Mention, Cannes Film Festival2009, Youth Jury Award, Ghent International Film Festival 2009, Wolgin Award: Best Full-Length Feature, Jerusalem Film Festival 2009, Grand Prize, Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival2009, Audience Award, Thessaloniki Film Festival2009, Best Screenplay: Scandar Copti and Yaron Shani, Thessaloniki Film Festival2009, Golden Alexander, Thessaloniki Film Festival
Nominations
2010, Best Foreign Language Film of the Year, Academy Awards, USA2009, Best Art Direction: Yoav Sinai, Awards of the Israeli Film Academy2009, Best Cinematography: Boaz Yehonatan Yaacov, Awards of the Israeli Film Academy2009, Best Costume Design: Rona Doron, Awards of the Israeli Film Academy2009, Best Sound: Erez Eini-Shavit and Itai Elohev2009, European Discovery of the Year: Scandar Copti and Yaron Shani, European Film Awards
Articles & Interviews
“It has a complex, elliptical structure that uses unconventional filming techniques to tell a bleak and fatalistic story conveyed with an unnerving sense of verisimilitude. “ – Kenneth Turan, Review: ‘Ajami’. Los Angeles Times, February 19, 2010.
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