« I must speak my truth about Israel, even if it is brutal and raw, » shares director Nadav Lapid before his visit to the Cinémathèque.

In a few short films and four movies (« Le Policier » in 2011, « L’Institutrice » in 2014, « Synonymes », Golden Bear at Berlin in 2019, and « Le Genou d’Ahed », Jury Prize at Cannes in 2021), Israeli filmmaker Nadav Lapid, who was born 48 years ago in Tel Aviv, has established himself in France and worldwide as one of the leading figures in contemporary cinema.

Comment avez-vous fait la découverte du cinéma ?

I arrived quite late. After my military service in Israel (which I talk about in « Synonyms »), I, who grew up in a country that was not at all cinephile, find myself in Paris! A friend took me to discover films without telling me what I was going to see, but after the screenings, he would explain everything to me. I was fascinated… I remember that after watching Pasolini’s « Theorem, » I found myself somewhere in the subway, lost… I was scratching the map of Paris to figure out where I was…

Quand avez-vous pris la décision de vous lancer dans la réalisation de films ?

Mes ambitions artistiques étaient plus littéraires, j’écrivais des nouvelles. Mais quand j’ai découvert tous ces films, j’avais l’impression – je l’ai toujours – que le cinéma était la forme la plus aboutie pour mettre des sentiments dans l’existence à cet instant précis. Certaines formes artistiques peuvent très bien évoquer le passé – mais le présent, la pensée politique et poétique s’expriment totalement au cinéma.

Which of your four films showcased at the Cinémathèque best represents your cinema?

Chacun me ressemble au moment où je l’ai fait. Je n’ai aucun regret – je ne dis pas qu’ils sont parfaits – mais je n’ai jamais fait de compromis. Quand je parle de mon intimité avec mon pays natal, je dois dire ma vérité, même si elle est brutale et crue.

Vos personnages principaux pourraient n’être qu’une seule et même personne (en général nommée Yoav), en révolte contre l’injustice : Yoav, c’est vous ?

Yes, of course. There is a part of me in all four films.

In « Synonyms, » your dual narrative describes Israel as an « abominable, odious, lamentable, repugnant, narrow-minded… » state. But Israel is not just the brutality of Netanyahou, it is also you, Aharon Appelfeld, Zeruya Shalev, Amos Gitai, Asaf Avidan, Gal Gadot, Dan Groover…

In my films, within myself and among these very important personalities that you mention, there is this evil that we must exorcise, this feeling of moral superiority. My characters attack Israel, it’s true, for its warlike side. These people, these artists are actually the expression of something predominant in our collective soul, a collective symptom that the French have experienced, and the Germans too, of course… Israel is a sick society.

Croyez-vous que l’art a le pouvoir de modifier les perceptions et les attitudes ?

I appreciate the notion that an artist believes this is achievable. I aspire for my films to possess that enchantment of stirring people, propelling them into the air, and leaving them completely transformed when they land back on the ground.

Ne craignez-vous pas que la politique soit plus discutée que le cinéma à la Cinémathèque de Toulouse où votre cinéma est célébré ?

In such a moment, everything can be overshadowed by a low-level political conversation that will bring nothing but more aggression. On the contrary, cinema can assist us in making discussions more urgent and profound.

« After the war… »

« The tragedy is that the Western world has failed (did it even try?) to set limits for Israel, claims Nadav Lapid. To tell them: you cannot continue like this. When you have a friend, you must tell them: there, you are crossing the line. If we let them do it, if we encourage them to continue, we are not their friend. Now, it’s too late, the war has started, we are in it. But after the war, maybe we can start talking again, everyone… »