| A Whore Like Me | |
|---|---|
 | |
| זונה כמוני | |
| Directed by | Yael Shachar, Sharon Yaish |
| Written by | Yael Shachar, Sharon Yaish |
| Starring | Csilla Ezra |
| Cinematography | Yael Shachar |
| Edited by | Sharon Yaish |
Production company | Daroma Productions |
Release date |
|
Running time | 60 minutes |
| Country | Israel |
| Language | Hebrew |
A Whore Like Me is an Israeli film written and directed by Sharon Yaish and Yael Shachar. [1]
At age 22, Csilla is abducted from a pub in Hungary, and sold to a prostitution ring in Israel. After escaping from her kidnappers, she learns the Hebrew language and volunteers in a humanitarian shelter, and is celebrating 10 years of sobriety. However, when Israel's Ministry of Interior does not believe that she was trafficked and will not give her a certificate of residency, she hires a private investigator and returns to her kidnappers to obtain proof. She searches for anyone who witnessed her trauma, determined not to allow her existence to be erased once again. However, she is unsure what the effect of returning to the hell from which she escaped will be. [2] [3] [4]
The film was produced by Hagai Arad, Elad Peleg and Daroma Productions; it was released with the support of Yes Doco, the New Fund for Film and Television and the National Council for Culture and the Arts.
The idea for the A Whore Like Me came to life when Yaish and Shachar were documenting some community theater in Tel Aviv, conducted by survivors of prostitution. They didn't know what direction their work would take, until Csilla came on stage and told her story. The filmmakers were so impressed with her forthrightness, her unique story, and her ability to reflect upon the ups and downs of her life, and decided to accompany her on her search for her abductors. [5] They describe the journey as riddled with disappointment and danger, alongside hope and determination. [5]
On June 2, 2019, Zehava Galon wrote a Facebook post addressing Interior Minister Aryeh Deri, urging him to recognize Csilla as a victim of trafficking in women and to cancel her deportation. [6]
On July 24, 2019, a crowdfunding campaign was launched to finance Csilla's legal expenses in her quest to obtain an Israeli identity card. [7]
Oron Shamir, in Srita, wrote a favorable review of A Whore Like Me, calling Csilla "a once-in-a-lifetime cinematic character", and that her telling of her experiences struck him deeply, even offered second-hand, as they were. [8] In her Haaretz review, Shani Littman calls A Whore Like Me "one of the most important [films] ever made about prostitution, exhorting that "all men must see this movie". [9] She further writes that the film is "sharp, poignant and piercing chronicling of the experience of a prostituted woman, detailing how she is on the extreme end of a spectrum that includes many, and perhaps all, women. [10]
| Year | Award | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Ophir (Israeli Film Academy) | Best Documentary under 60 minutes | Won |
| The Israeli Documentary Film Awards | Best Documentary under 60 minutes | Won | |
| Docaviv | Best Israeli Film | Nominated |
The Winograd Commission is an Israeli government-appointed commission of inquiry, chaired by retired judge Eliyahu Winograd, which investigated and drew lessons from the 2006 Lebanon War. The committee had its first plenary session on 18 September 2006 and began summoning and hearing testimonies from witnesses on 2 November of that year. On 30 April 2007 the Commission released its preliminary report, harshly criticizing key decision-makers. At the same time, it has been praised as testimony to the fortitude of Israel's democracy and ability to self-criticize, impressing even Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. The final Winograd Commission report was announced in Binyanei HaUma in Jerusalem on 30 January 2008.
Yael Naim is a French-born Israeli singer and actress. She rose to fame in 2008 in the US after her hit single "New Soul" was used by Apple in an advertising campaign for its MacBook Air. The song peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100. In 2013, the French government made her a knight of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres.
Tzvia Greenfield is an Israeli politician and a former Member of the Knesset for Meretz. She was the first Haredi woman to be an MK.
Moshe "Mossi" Raz is an Israeli politician. He is currently a member of the Knesset for Meretz.
Yair Qedar is an Israeli documentary filmmaker, social activist and former journalist.
Edna Arbel is an Israeli lawyer who was a justice on the Supreme Court of Israel from May 2004 to June 2014. She is a native of Jerusalem.
Ibtisam Mara'ana-Menuhin is an Israeli Arab politician, film director, and producer. She is currently a member of the Knesset for the Labor Party.
Israeli fashion refers to fashion design and modeling in Israel.
Zehava Gal-On is an Israeli politician, serving as a member of the Knesset from 1999 to 2017. She was the chairwoman of the Meretz political party from 2012 to 2018.
Israel Women's Network (IWN) is a feminist non-partisan civil society organization founded in Jerusalem in 1984. IWN's mission is to advance the status of women in Israel by promoting equality through a range of projects and methods.
Shira Arad is an Israeli film editor and musical supervisor. She is a former DJ and TV actress. In 2016 she received the Ophir Award for Best Film Editing, for the movie Our Father. Since 2020 Arad is a member of the European Film Academy.
Lucy Ayoub is an Israeli television presenter, poet and radio host, formerly of the IPBC (Kan) and currently working for Keshet. Ayoub co-hosted the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 alongside Assi Azar, Bar Refaeli and Erez Tal.
Red Cow is a 2018 Israeli independent drama film, directed and written by Tsivia Barkai Yacov. The film premiered at the 2018 Berlin International Film Festival, and won the Best Israeli Film and Best Debut Film awards at the Jerusalem Film Festival.
Dana Goldberg is an Israeli poet, filmmaker and playwright.
Rachel Leah Jones is an American-Israeli documentary film director and producer. Her documentary film Advocate about the controversial human rights lawyer Leah Tsemel, which she co-directed and co-produced with cinematographer Philippe Bellaïche, premiered at 2019 Sundance Film Festival, and won top prizes at Kraków Film Festival, Thessaloniki Documentary Festival and Docaviv Festival.
Advocate is a 2019 Israeli documentary film, directed by Rachel Leah Jones and Philippe Bellaïche. The film premiered at the 2019 Sundance Festival, and went on to win top prizes at Thessaloniki Documentary Festival, Kraków Film Festival, Hong Kong International Film Festival and Docaviv Festival. Advocate won the Emmy for Best Documentary in the 42nd News and Documentary Emmy Awards.
Sharon Yaish is an Israeli director and editor known for her documentary film A Whore Like Me (2019).
Mother, I Am Suffocating. This Is My Last Film About You is a 2019 Lesotho bilingual documentary film produced, written and directed by Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese. The film depicts the scenario of personal experiences of the director after his departure from Lesotho who now resides in Germany. The film was released on 9 February 2019 and received critical acclaim for its screenplay and cinematography. The film also received several nominations at international film festivals and was rated as one of the best African films of 2019.
Yael Eisenberg is an Israeli musician, singer, actress and poet.
