Hollywood guests take center stage at Israel Film Festival in LA

NOVEMBER 15, 2026 15:29From October 7 survivors making music with American rock stars to an unexpected friendship between a Palestinian driver and an Israeli passenger in Berlin, the 38th Israel Film Festival in Los Angeles will present creative cinematic portraits of Israel’s diversity from November 18-24.Founded and directed by Meir Fenigstein, known to generations of Israeli music fans as the drummer and Poogy character from the supergroup Kaveret, the festival will feature contemporary dramas, comedies, and documentaries, along with encounters with filmmakers and actors.The opening gala at the Writers Guild Theater in Beverly Hills will honor two figures who have helped bring Israeli and American entertainment to audiences: legendary Israeli producer Moshe Edery and Hollywood producer Kevin S. Bright. Edery has produced over 200 movies and television series, from classics such as Avi Nesher’s Turn Left at the End of the World, Eytan Fox’s Walk on Water, and Joseph Cedar’s Beaufort, to recent hits that include Ben Bachar’s Saving Shuli-San and Nesher’s Our Loves.Bright is best known as a producer of the series Friends, and he will attend a screening of one of his latest projects, The Bridge, which he produced with David Fishof.Directed by Brad Allgood, the documentary follows 10 Israeli musicians who survived October 7 as they travel to Los Angeles to participate in Rock ’n’ Roll Fantasy Camp, playing alongside musicians from Guns N’ Roses, Van Halen, and Skid Row.A view of the downtown skyline seen from the 105 Freeway on September 23, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (credit: Apu Gomes/Getty Images)The documentary was partly inspired by the story of Yotam Haim, a musician who was kidnapped by Hamas and killed by mistake during an escape attempt, whose father and brother played music at his funeral. The film explores how making music together can help people coping with trauma and loss rediscover joy.Award-winning Israeli films open the festivalMoshe Rosenthal’s Tell Me Everything, Israel’s Ophir Award-winning submission for the Academy Award for Best International Feature, will open the festival, with the filmmaker in attendance.Rosenthal, whose previous film was Karaoke, tells the story of Boaz, a boy who discovers a secret about his father that threatens to tear his family apart. Years later, he must confront the consequences of that discovery.Another documentary highlight will be Alon Gur Arye’s Topol: On Top of the World, a look at the actor whose performances in Sallah Shabati and Fiddler on the Roof made him an international star. Drawing on his personal archive, including his artwork, the film explores his career, the inventions he created, and his secret work for the Mossad. Gur Arye and Anat Topol-Barzilai, Chaim Topol’s daughter, will join a discussion after a screening.Another legend from the Israeli film world is at the center of Michal Bat-Adam’s Moshe Mizrahi: Climbing the Mountain, an intimate portrait of her late husband, the Oscar-winning director, combining family footage with his childhood memories of Alexandria, immigration to Israel, and filmmaking in France.Ran Tal’s The Sixteenth Sheep, The Reunion revisits the beloved musical collaboration that brought together Yehonatan Geffen’s children’s book of poems, Yoni Rechter’s music, and performers Gidi Gov, Yehudit Ravitz, David Broza, and Rechter. The classic album was recently revived in a wildly popular series of performances by the original performers.Shaked Goren’s Esther explores the life of singer Esther Ofarim through telephone conversations between the filmmaker in Tel Aviv and the singer in Hamburg.'Where To?': unlikely friendship of Palestinian Uber driver and young IsraeliA highlight of the program will be Assaf Machnes’s Where To?, starring Ehab Salami and Ido Tako. Set during late-night journeys through Berlin, it follows Hassan, a Palestinian Uber driver, and Amir, a young Israeli whose repeated appearances in his cab develop into an unlikely friendship. Both actors won Ophir Awards for their performances.Ruthy Pribar’s What Is to Come follows a woman who heads to Eilat hoping to rebuild her life, while Reut Akkerman’s Stay! centers on an adopted woman confronting the biological family she never knew. Dina Zvi-Riklis’s Blue Marks, adapted from Emilie Moatti’s novel, follows a young woman from Netanya as she seeks a new life in Paris.There will also be opportunities to laugh with Checkout! The movie brings the beloved supermarket sitcom’s characters to the big screen. Erez Tadmor’s Matchmaking 3 will close the festival with another romantic adventure set in the Orthodox matchmaking world.Festival guests will include Pribar, Akkerman, actress Noa Ohayon, and actor Yaakov Zada-Daniel.“The Israel Film Festival in Los Angeles remains the most renowned and preeminent showcase in the United States to highlight Israeli filmmakers and talent,” Fenigstein said.“This year’s slate of 15 feature films and thought-provoking documentaries explicitly prioritizes and reflects nonpartisan programming to foster and engage in healthy dialogue, offers perspectives of differing points of view across multiple cultural divides, and aims to create understanding of its culture through storytelling.Precisely at a time when Israeli cinema and culture face challenges internationally, it is important for us to continue bringing Israeli creative work to American audiences.”Screenings will take place at the Fine Arts Theatre in Beverly Hills and Laemmle Town Center 5 in Encino. For the full program and tickets, visit www.israelfilmfestival.comFollow us on Google