Israeli Culture Minister Miki Zohar Sparks Outrage with Controversial Anti-Film Industry Video

Israeli Culture Minister Miki Zohar released a provocative video ahead of the Likud primaries attacking the Israeli film industry and promoting his cinema reform. The video depicts a film director wearing a keffiyeh receiving state funds to produce movies portraying Israeli soldiers as oppressors and villains. Zohar claims his reform stops funding films that defame Israel, shifting resources to productions that Israelis support.

The video drew widespread condemnation from journalists, cultural figures, academics, and the public. Dov Gil-Har, a journalist for Kan News in Europe, likened the video to Nazi propaganda. Film critic Yael Shuv criticized Zohar for falsely portraying Israeli filmmakers as corrupt and dependent on state funds, arguing that most do not earn a living from Israeli cinema. Professor Yishai Rosen-Zvi from Tel Aviv University highlighted the video’s selective examples, contrasting them with harsher realities in the West Bank, and accused Zohar of promoting a distorted narrative.

Other commentators accused Zohar of inciting division and undermining freedom of expression. Naama Harel mocked Zohar’s rhetoric about a sector that allegedly avoids military service and promotes terror. Michal Atiya Ovadia condemned the government as corrupt and destructive, warning of its historical legacy. Social media users also recalled the 2015 Likud campaign video depicting terror attacks, linking it to the October 7 Hamas massacre.

The video shows staged scenes of a director instructing actors to portray soldiers negatively, with a production assistant withdrawing money from an ATM labeled "State of Israel." Zohar concludes by declaring an end to funding films that defame IDF soldiers, asserting this will not happen on his watch. The controversy highlights tensions over cultural funding, freedom of expression, and political narratives in Israel’s film sector.