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FEATURE FILM

2014

88' – DCP – Color – Israel, France, Russia, Italy

Tsili

World War II. Tsili, a young Jewish woman, is hiding in the forest South of Czernowicz. Her entire family was deported to the camps. Hiding in the war zone, she builds a nest for herself. Escaping the savagery of the valley, she finds refuge in the nature. One day, Marek discovers her nest. He addresses her in Yiddish and finds out that she belongs to his people. Marek settles in the nest with Tsili. One day he will go down to the village to look for food. He will never return. The war is over. Tsili starts walking. She finds a group of people assembling next to the coast looking for a boat that will take them to another land. 

Inspired by the novel by Aharon Appelfeld, the film tells the story of the wandering of its heroin submerged in the nightmare of the war. Tsili gathers all the forces of intuition and vitality to survive in this desperate universe.


DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT

I chose to incarnate the story of Tsili, using three female protagonists: two actresses, Sarah and Meshi, of different ages, and one female voice, the one of Lea Koenig. As if this generation of young women survivors, abused by the Holocaust, had big holes in their biographies. As if the years of youth and pleasure were missing and never be given back to them. The film was shot in Yiddish, the language of the European Diaspora. 

I was inspired by what Aharon Appelfeld told Philip Roth: “The reality of the Holocaust surpassed any imagination. If I remained true to the facts, no one would believe me. But the moment I chose a girl, a little older than I was at that time, I removed ‘the story of my life’ from the mighty grip of memory and gave it over to the creative laboratory. There memory is not the only proprietor. There one needs a causal explanation, a thread to tie things together. The exceptional is permissible only if it is part of an overall structure and contributes to its understanding. When I wrote ‘Tsili’ I was interested in the possibilities of naiveness in art. Can there be a naive modern art? It seemed to me that without the naivete still found among children and old people and, to some extent, in ourselves, the work of art would be flawed. I tried to correct that flaw.”

 

FESTIVALS

• Biennale di Venezia/Mostra d’arte cinematografica 2014

• Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival 2014

• Morelia International Film Festival 2014

• Warsaw Jewish Film Festival 2014

• Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival 2014

• New York Jewish Film Festival 2015

CREDITS

Screenplay Amos Gitai and Marie-José Sanselme, after the novel by Aharon Appelfeld

Cinematography Giora Bejach

Sound design Alex Claude, Tulli Chen

Music Alexej Kochetkov, Amit Poznansky

Editing Yuval Orr, Isabelle Ingold

Production design Andrei Chernikov

Costumes Dani Bar Shai


Cast Sarah Adler, Meshi Olinski, Adam Tsekhman, Lea Koenig, Andrey Kashkar, Yelena Yaralova, Alexey Kochetkov


Production Agav Films, Archipel 35, Hamon Hafakot, Trikita Entertainment, Citrullo International

Producers Michael Tapuach, Laurent Truchot, Yury Krestinskiy, Pavel Douvidzon, Denis Freyd, Amos Gitai / Associate producers Carlo Hintermann, Gerardo Panichi, Luca Venitucci, Leon Edry, Moshe Edry in association with Israeli Film Fund, Russian Film Fund, United King

Line producer Gadi Levy

World War II. Tsili, a young Jewish woman, is hiding in the forest South of Czernowicz. Her entire family was deported to the camps. Hiding in the war zone, she builds a nest for herself. Escaping the savagery of the valley, she finds refuge in the nature. One day, Marek discovers her nest. He addresses her in Yiddish and finds out that she belongs to his people. Marek settles in the nest with Tsili. One day he will go down to the village to look for food. He will never return. The war is over. Tsili starts walking. She finds a group of people assembling next to the coast looking for a boat that will take them to another land. 

Inspired by the novel by Aharon Appelfeld, the film tells the story of the wandering of its heroin submerged in the nightmare of the war. Tsili gathers all the forces of intuition and vitality to survive in this desperate universe.


DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT

I chose to incarnate the story of Tsili, using three female protagonists: two actresses, Sarah and Meshi, of different ages, and one female voice, the one of Lea Koenig. As if this generation of young women survivors, abused by the Holocaust, had big holes in their biographies. As if the years of youth and pleasure were missing and never be given back to them. The film was shot in Yiddish, the language of the European Diaspora. 

I was inspired by what Aharon Appelfeld told Philip Roth: “The reality of the Holocaust surpassed any imagination. If I remained true to the facts, no one would believe me. But the moment I chose a girl, a little older than I was at that time, I removed ‘the story of my life’ from the mighty grip of memory and gave it over to the creative laboratory. There memory is not the only proprietor. There one needs a causal explanation, a thread to tie things together. The exceptional is permissible only if it is part of an overall structure and contributes to its understanding. When I wrote ‘Tsili’ I was interested in the possibilities of naiveness in art. Can there be a naive modern art? It seemed to me that without the naivete still found among children and old people and, to some extent, in ourselves, the work of art would be flawed. I tried to correct that flaw.”

 

FESTIVALS

• Biennale di Venezia/Mostra d’arte cinematografica 2014

• Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival 2014

• Morelia International Film Festival 2014

• Warsaw Jewish Film Festival 2014

• Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival 2014

• New York Jewish Film Festival 2015

CREDITS

Screenplay Amos Gitai and Marie-José Sanselme, after the novel by Aharon Appelfeld

Cinematography Giora Bejach

Sound design Alex Claude, Tulli Chen

Music Alexej Kochetkov, Amit Poznansky

Editing Yuval Orr, Isabelle Ingold

Production design Andrei Chernikov

Costumes Dani Bar Shai


Cast Sarah Adler, Meshi Olinski, Adam Tsekhman, Lea Koenig, Andrey Kashkar, Yelena Yaralova, Alexey Kochetkov


Production Agav Films, Archipel 35, Hamon Hafakot, Trikita Entertainment, Citrullo International

Producers Michael Tapuach, Laurent Truchot, Yury Krestinskiy, Pavel Douvidzon, Denis Freyd, Amos Gitai / Associate producers Carlo Hintermann, Gerardo Panichi, Luca Venitucci, Leon Edry, Moshe Edry in association with Israeli Film Fund, Russian Film Fund, United King

Line producer Gadi Levy


SALES / DISTRIBUTION

AGAV FILMS

6, cour Berard. 75004 Paris – France

+33 (0)1 42 40 48 45

agav@amosgitai.com

SALES / DISTRIBUTION

AGAV FILMS

6, cour Berard. 75004 Paris

France

+33 (0)1 42 40 48 45

agav@amosgitai.com

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