Kissufim (2023)

Interesting facts

Kissufim is a 2023 Israeli coming of age drama film directed by Keren Nechmad. The film stars Swell Ariel Or, Yehonatan Vilozny and Ofer Grinberg. It takes place on Kibbutz Kissufim in 1977, the period after the Yom Kippur War and before the Camp David Accords in 1978. It follows a group of young Nahal recruits experiencing love and freedom. It centres on three friends, Eli, Yoav and Ron. The three move between emotions of love, hate, jealousy and passion, while maintaining a deep friendship. Eli's character is based on the true story of Elaine Gazit, a 21-year-old Israeli woman serving with Nahal on the kibbutz.

Production

The idea to produce the film began at a memorial for Elaine Gazit, that was attended by the actor and director, Dan Turgeman, also from Elaine's Nahal group. At the memorial, Turgeman suggested to Gazia's family and friends that a film should be made about Elaine. They eventually contacted the film producer, Mickey Rabinovitz, who dated Elaine.

The script is based on conversations and stories that Elaine's friends had with scriptwriter, Yonatan Bar-Ilan that were subsequently dramatized.

Elaine's sister, Dafna, also attended filming at Kissufim: "Everything looks like it did then, nothing had to be changed. As if time stood still, the Nahal rooms also remained as they were."

The film was shot over 17 days on location at Kibbutz Kissufim and

Zikim Beach. Kibbutz members participated fully with the production, allowing wide use of the locations and even appear as extras in the film. Due to the proximity to the Gaza Strip, the Kibbutz arranged a security briefing for the crew. Saar Margolis, who conducted the security briefing, was killed in October 7 attacks.

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