Docaviv fest to focus on women at the 20th edition

Tel Aviv, April 23: Docaviv, Israels only festival devoted exclusively to documentary filmmaking, will celebrate its 20th edition in May with the focus on women empowerment, refugees and the politics of globalisation.

The festival takes place annually here with screenings across the city.

This year, 121 films -- both from Israeli documentarians and established international directors -- will be shown at the Tel Aviv Cinematheque and a number of other locations, reports variety.com.

Some of the key highlights are Elwira Niewiera and Piotr Rosolowski who will present "The Prince and the Dybbuk", which won Best Documentary at the Venice Film Festival last year; Switzerland's Markus Imhoof will compete in the international competition with "Eldorado", his hard look at the current refugee crisis in Europe; and Maryam Ebrahimi, an Iranian director living in exile in Sweden, will make history by bringing to the Jewish state her film on Iranian propaganda "Stronger Than a Bullet".

Julie Cohen and Betsy West are bringing "RBG", Stefanie Brockhaus and her co-director Andy Wolff will present "The Poetess" and Irene Lusztig will get "Yours in Sisterhood" to the fest.

"This year's rich programme presents cinema that is a response to the current mood of women's protest against the patriarchy, film that asks questions and examines itself," said Karin Rivkind Segal, Docaviv's artistic director.

According to variety.com, Docaviv celebrates its 20th birthday at a fraught moment.

"Israeli filmmakers are facing increased hostility and calls for censorship from the nation's right-wing government, while Israeli films -- including both narrative features like "Foxtrot" and deep-dive documentaries including "Dancing in Jaffa", "The Gatekeepers" and "5 Broken Cameras" (a joint Israeli-Palestinian directorial project) - have never enjoyed more international respect," reports variety.com.

Also this year, Docaviv will inaugurate a new competition category: the documentary short. The winner will automatically be submitted as a nominee for the Oscar for Best Documentary Short Film.

The fest will run from May 17-26, this year.