Breakthrough Talent Showcase! Sam Spiegel International Film Lab Pitching Event - 13th Edition

Breakthrough Talent Showcase! The Sam Spiegel International Film Lab introduces 10 market viable features from Brazil, Hungary, Austria and Israel. After a 10 month development process of their first or second feature films, teams of filmmakers and producers will show a 3-minute scene from the film they developed and pitch their story. For full information on the projects, please visit our catalogue: https://labs.jsfs.co.il/catalogedition13 

MODERATOR:

AC Coppens (Founder, The Catalysts)

SPEAKERS:

Dana Blankstein Cohen (Executive Director, Jerusalem Sam Spiegel Film and TV School)

Mor Eldar (Director, Sam Spiegel Film and Series Labs)

LIST OF PROJECTS:

Pureland- A sheltered and talented young singer seeks escape in fleeting relationships, until three contrasting men confront him with what it means to be human, and what it takes to grow. Filmmaker and Producer: C. B. Yi (“Moneyboys”). Austria

Goodbye, Boys - After losing their mother, Ian and Noah set out to find their father,  drifting through broken homes and uncertain ties — not in search of rescue, but of somewhere they might finally belong. Filmmaker: Sacha Amaral (“The Pleasure is Mine”); Producer: Agustin Gagliardi. Brazil/France/Portugal

Don’t Be a Stranger - A former-addict male nurse, searches for his ex-boyfriend, fearing he may have become the latest victim in a string of murders haunting the queer community of a coastal city. Confronting the shadow of death, he navigates the line between fear and desire, in a journey of self-discovery and growth. Filmmaker: Fellipe Fernandes (“Rio Doce”); Producer: Dora Amorim. Brazil

Soft Hours - Middle aged Ilona, unable to accept her son's death, pays a young stranger to fill his void.  As their emotional roles blur, the illusion begins to crack, forcing Ilona to finally begin to grieve. Filmmaker: Anna Gyimesi; Producer: Barbara Janisova Feglova. Slovakia/Hungary

Gut Feeling - An unwanted pregnancy sends a Shin Bet ( Israel’s Secret Service) operative into a spiral of panic attacks, putting both her life and her identity as a female fighter on the line. Filmmakers: Gilad Inbar & Benny Fredman (“Home”); Producer: Benny Fredman. Israel

Family Honor - When a young girl is murdered in her home village, an Arab detective in the Israeli police is assigned to the case - a suspected honor killing that compels him to confront his own values, his family, and the complex social fabric of the community he comes from. Filmmakers: Hisham Suliman & Sari Bisharat; Producer: Yoav Halevy. Israel

Milah - A family gathering, celebrating the ancient ceremony of Bris Milah, goes off the rails when Shira, the new mother, refuses to have her child circumcised. Filmmaker: Amos Holzman; Producer: Talya Bernstein. Israel

White Night - A struggling actor by day and paramedic by night, is swept into a relentless shift. Between emergencies, he must prepare for an audition that forces him to confront the roles he plays in life—on, and off stage. Filmmaker: Nir Guilat; Producer: Eviatar Moncaz. Israel

The Real Estate Agent - A real-estate agent falls in love with the remote country house she was asked to sell, and begins to lead a secret, parallel life in it. The place becomes her own private paradise. When the house is sold – she decides to do anything she can to prevent it. Filmmaker: Gadi Rimer; Producer: Harel Ben Melech. Israel

Dado Beach - An ambitious policewoman is sent to investigate the disappearance of a lifeguard in Dado Beach, Haifa. Following in his footsteps, she finds herself uncovering the truth behind the mysterious criminal death of her own father. Filmmaker: Or Engel; Producer: Asaf Nawi. Israel

HOSTED BY SAM SPIEGEL INTERNATIONAL FILM LAB

SAM SPIEGEL INTERNATIONAL FILM LAB

Since its launch in 2011, the Sam Spiegel International Film Lab has been a leading force in the development of groundbreaking feature films by some of the world’s most promising talents.
​Amongst the Lab’s graduates are Laszlo Nemes with "Son of Saul" (winner of the Oscars for Best Foreign Film), Antoneta Alamat Kusijanovic with "Murina" (winner of the Camera d'Or in Cannes Film Festival 2021); Shuchi Talati with "Girls Will Be Girls" (winner of the Audience Award and Best Actress award in Sundance Film Festival 2024); Marianna Brennand Fortes with “Manas” (winner of the Giornate Degli Autori Director's Award in the 81st Venice International Film Festival), and others.
The Lab is an eight-month development program. The selected international and Israeli projects undergo an in-depth process with the Lab's acclaimed script editors, after which they are presented to an audience of jury members and decision makers at a celebratory event, which is taking place this year at the Venice Production Bridge.
The jury awards production prizes totaling $50,000- $70,000, generously donated by the Beracha Foundation. 
​The Sam Spiegel International Film Lab supports bold storytellers, who look deeply into the human experience in search for their unique truth. The projects speak for themselves.