Amos Guttman

Taboo: Amos Guttman

While he was alive, Amos Guttman remained a red flag for the notoriously conservative Israeli film establishment. A Romanian migrant, he, never truly found his place in his new home. He was gay and made the nation's first movies on the subject. He was an artist who wanted to make films not for the masses but for the few. Conversely, he wanted to make movies that connected with the rest of the world and not only Israel – works that maybe Derek Jarman or Pedro Almodóvar could watch by chance and feel understood.

Amos Guttman: Filmmaker

From 1977 to his untimely death in 1993, Amos Guttman directed six films, all of them deeply personal reflections of his own life. Interviews with lovers, family and friends--including some of the most important people in Israeli cinema--tell the gripping story of a strikingly handsome, charismatic and deeply passionate gay man who has become a revered cult figure in Israeli cinema.Interviews with the late filmmaker and fascinating footage of him on the set convey the same passion that comes through in scenes from his films, lovingly selected by documentarian Ran Kotzer. Like Fellini, Guttman transformed his dreams and everyday conversations with friends and family into integral parts of his pictures. He is most remarkable for his striking and original use of the frame. Every shot is a treasure. Amos Guttman dared to portray subjects that were taboo in his society, and his search for the right of individual expression is the connecting link of his works.