Shemi Zarhin

One of Israel’s leading writer/director, he wrote TEL-AVIV STORIES and his film PASSOVER FEVER won best screenplay at the Montreal World Film Festival in 1995. In 1998, the Israeli Academy of Motion Picture and Television honoured him with a best director award for DANGEROUS ACTS. Mr. Zarhin teaches direction and scriptwriting at prestigious Sam Spiegel Film and Television School in Jerusalem.

Director's statement

“The BONJOUR MONSIEUR SHLOMI screenplay was written during five unusual days in September 2001. Contrary to previous screenplays I had written, it practically wrote itself. From the moment producer Eitan Avan took the screenplay to read, things began to move very quickly. Less than a week had gone by since the writing of the screenplay began, and ICP had already given their approval to start shooting. A few more days went by and the Tel Aviv Fund joined the project too. I must admit that the speed startled me. You need time to think, to adapt, to try and understand whether there is a screenplay here to begin with and whether it is worthy. Eitan Evan persuaded me to let the process virtually evolve itself and rely on our gut feeling, because the film – and he quoted a line from the screenplay – ‘has a life of its own’”.