SYNONYMES
O.V in French and Hebrew subtitled in English and Spanish
Composed by an energetic and corporal staging, and an implacable vision of the Israeli state violence, Lapid (The Kindergarten Teacher) who took home the Golden Bear in the Berlinale. Every step taken on this (autobiographical) story of death and resurrection is not to be taken lightly. Upon arrival in Paris, Yoav literally falls naked, without possessions or identity. He is then reborn from scratch, reneging on Israel and Hebrew, and establishing an intricate and sensual relationship with his benefactors Émile (Quentin Dolmaire, A Violent Desire for Joy) and his girlfriend Caroline (Louise Chevillotte, Lover for a Day).
Direction: Nadav Lapid
Script: Nadav Lapid, Haïm Lapid
Cinematography: Shaï Goldman
Editing: Era Lapid, François Gédigier, Neta Braun
Sound: Marina Kertesz
Cast: Tom Mercier, Quentin Dolmaire, Louise Chevillotte
Producción: Saïd Ben Saïd, Michel Merkt
Production Company: SBS Films
NADAV LAPID
Born in Tel Aviv, Israel in 1975, this director and screenwriter studied philosophy at Tel Aviv University. After military service, he moved to Paris before returning to Israel to take a degree at the Sam Spiegel Film & Television School in Jerusalem. His short film Road screened in the 2005 Belinale’s Panorama. His debut feature film Policeman won the Special Jury Prize at Locarno in 2011 while The Kindergarten Teacher featured in the 2014 Semaine de la Critique at Cannes, and won the Silver Giraldillo in Seville. In 2015, Why? screened in Berlinale Shorts, and in 2016 we featured a special program with his films Emile’s Girlfriend and From the Diary of a Wedding Photographer. He is a recipient of the French Order Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres. His latest film, Synonymes, won the Golden Bear in Berlin.