For many years, Israeli cinema has been under the impression that genre films do not work well in Hebrew. While around the world, sci-fi films were a commercial and critical success, alongside screenings and awards at prestigious festivals, the local cinema canon continued to be rooted in family dramas and films about conflict. This perception has been shattered in the past decade thanks to a number of young directors who did not let laws and conventions restrict them and independently created “Blue-and-White” genre films. These are becoming increasingly successful, in Israel and around the world, and are creating new ways, both in content and aesthetics, to look at Israeli reality.

Each year a different genre is chosen for the festival and, as part of the workshop, students from the Steve Tisch School of Film and Television create films inspired by it. This year the students focused on the science-fiction genre and the found-footage genre. They wrote, directed and produced short films, true to the original spirit of the genres. At the same time, a contemporary dialogue is taking place, while through an in-depth acquaintance with its conventions, responsiveness and challenges, the filmmakers have examined the place of these genres in today's social and cultural climate.

Workshop facilitator: Danny Lerner