Tom Nesher represents Israel with “Come Closer”

Tom Nesher's directorial debut Come closer will represent Israel at the 97th Academy Awards after winning the Best Picture award at the country's Ophir Film Awards on Monday night.

Lia Elalouf plays a young woman struggling with the sudden death of her brother in a tragic accident, whose grief takes an obsessive turn when she discovers that he had a secret girlfriend.

Nesher, the daughter of renowned Israeli director Avi Nesher, was inspired for the plot by the death of her own brother Ari Nesher, who died in a hit-and-run accident in 2018 at the age of 17.

Come closerwhich was nominated in 12 categories, also won awards for Best Director, Best Actress (Elalouf) and Best Editing.

The film had its world premiere at Tribeca earlier this year and won the Viewpoint Award. It had its Israeli premiere in July at the Jerusalem Film Festival, where it won the Best First Feature award and the Best Actress award for Elalouf. It opens in Israeli theaters this week.

Against the backdrop of the Israel-Gaza conflict sparked by the October 7 Hamas attacks, this year's Ophir Awards ceremony was a somber affair. Most of the speakers and moderators repeated calls for the safe return of the 100 or so hostages believed to still be held in Gaza.

The late filmmaker Yahav Viner, who was murdered on October 7 in his kibbutz Kfar Aza, posthumously received the Ophir for best short film for his last work. The sonHis widow, filmmaker and singer Shaylee Atary, accepted the award on his behalf.