August 27, 2010 — Coral Gables — With three Academy Award-nominated Best Foreign Language films produced within the last three years, the international movie-making industry has noticed Israel can create powerful and inspiring films. Visiting Film Scholar Pablo Utin will be teaching a specialty course at the University of Miami’s School of Communication this fall semester titled Contemporary Israeli Cinema, which examines this emerging cinema.
Utin, who was born in Argentina and immigrated to Israel as a teenager.
“This class looks at how issues affecting the country are represented in film, how politics are involved, and how cinematic film styles have changed over time,” said Utin.
The class also explores the Israeli-Arab conflict, the New Jew-Old Jew conflict, and the conflict among different Jewish ethnicities in Israel. It includes film screenings at the Cosford Cinema.
Utin said he is excited to share Israeli filmmaking with UM students at a time when it is at its best. Since 2008, Israel has produced an Oscar-nominated Best Foreign Language Film each year.
“A decade ago cinema wasn’t important in Israel, but we are really starting to see directors experiment with film and embrace film over the last few years,” Utin noted.
A Presidential Scholarship recipient at Tel Aviv University, Utin has taught film and television courses in Tel Aviv. His scholarly research has been instrumental in the analysis and promotion of New Israeli Cinema. Utin has worked as a film journalist, edited for Israel’s premiere film magazine, served on film festival juries, and co-founded and serves as program director of the Holon Cinematheque. A short film director and a published author, his most recent book, "The New Israeli Cinema: Conversations with Filmmakers," was published in 2008. His next book, Orson Welles, will be available this year. Both books are written in Hebrew.
Utin’s residency was made possible with support from the Schusterman Visiting Artist Program in collaboration with the School of Communication Motion Picture Program, the Miller Center for Contemporary Judaic Studies, the Feldenkreis Program in Judaic Studies, and UM Hillel. The Schusterman Visiting Artist Program is one of the largest residency programs for Israeli artists and offers opportunities for Americans to experience Israeli culture.
“Providing a learning experience within a multicultural and international context is a strategic goal of the Motion Picture Program,” said Konstantia “Dia” Kontaxis, Motion Picture Program director at the School of Communication. “We are thankful to our partners and Mr. Utin for making this residency possible.”
