Avi Mograbi – Guest of honour

This year the MajorDocs guest of honour is Avi Mograbi (Tel Aviv, 1956).
Mograbi, a student of philosophy and art, is not only the most distinguished nonfiction filmmaker in Israel, but also probably in the whole of the Middle East. His distinctive work has its own language, which brings together experimentation, identity, politics and memory. His films have been screened in festivals all around  the world, including Rotterdam, Cannes, Berlinale and Venice.

It is precisely his non-conformism, his commitment to the profession and his generosity in sharing his vision and filmmaking process that prompted his invitation to this year’s MajorDocs, where he will open the festival with one of his films, offer a masterclass on the creative process and chair the jury.

Israeli filmmaker and video artist Avi Mograbi was born in 1956 in Tel Aviv, where he lives and works to this day. Having studied art and philosophy, he gained his first production experiences working as an assistant director on commercials and feature films, while his own filmmaking career began in 1989. Since 1999, he has taught documentary and experimental film at Tel Aviv University and the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem. Mograbi, one of Israel’s most distinguished filmmakers, is known for his unwavering commitment to social, cultural and political justice in the Middle East, as well as his experimentalism and innovative contribution to cinematic language. Avi Mogrbi’s documentary films have been programmed by festivals worldwide, including: Cannes, Berlin, Venice, Rome, New York, FID Marseille, Vision du Reel and San Francisco, among others.