Naftaly Gliksberg

This Documentary directed by Naftaly Gliksberg follows the former Prime Minister and President of Israel, focusing in his politics and private life.

Outside observers looking at the last 25 years in Israeli could conclude that the Jewish state has disintegrated into a deeply fragmented tribal society with little holding it together – Jews vs Arabs, secular vs ultra-Orthodox, Right vs Left, the Center vs the periphery. This is a docuseries about Israel’s most turbulent generation, beginning in 1995, with the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin. Visiting the pivotal events since then, we reach today’s volcanic moment, as Israel is on the verge of a civil war.

Ashkenazi, Mizrachi, ultra-Orthodox, Israeli Arabs... The different groups that make up Israeli society seem irreconcilable. Who are they? Can their complicated history explain the current situation in the country?

In the 1980s, the Mossad operated a vacation village in Sudan, which served as a cover for a secret headquarters that dealt with bringing thousands of Jews from Ethiopia to Israel. Mossad agents are interviewed in the film and tell about the operation.

A meticulous examination fo the 2003 space shuttle disaster, COLUMBIA: THE TRAGIC LOSS is also a poignant tribute to Ilan Ramon, the Israeli Air Force colonel who became the first Israeli astronaut ever to venture into outer space. The crew of seven died when Columbia broke apart during reentry in the skies over the southern United States. This admiring portrait is told through affecting family interviews, and a wealth of archival materials, including never-before-seen footage from the mission, and Ramon's own diary, miraculously retrieved from the crash debris. The film also confronts the difficult questions arising from the crash. Was it possible to save the crew of the Columbia? Was the accident inevitable, or did the NASA bureaucracy fail? COLUMBIA: THE TRAGIC LOSS is an emotionally charged documentary that blends hard facts with a heartbreaking personal story of an Israeli hero who gave his life for all of humanity.