1341 Framim Mehamatzlema Shel Micha Bar-Am

1341 Frames of Love and War | 1341 Bilder von Krieg und Liebe
Like the best films about photography, 1341 Framim makes a simple but crucial choice to put cinema in the service of still images, poising itself on the line that separates documentary from the much less frequent form of the still image film, between the evanescence and persistence of a frame. The career of Israeli photo reporter Micha Bar-Am, born in Berlin in 1930, thus becomes an assembly of iconic snapshots, enlargements and contact sheets which serve as the score for two voices: Micha, who is struggling with his memories as some remain while others fade, and his wife Orna, the assiduous curator of his archive and custodian of the memory that he is losing in his old age. However, forgetting is also a choice, given the events and atrocities Bar-Am immortalised by documenting the history of Israel including Adolf Eichmann’s trial in 1961, the Six-Day War in 1967, the Yom Kippur War in 1973 and the massacre of Sabra and Shatila in 1982. But whether they’re confronting the horrors of war or moments of family life, his pictures always reveal his ability to turn photography into a refined language of the gaze and, in the background, as the constant protagonist, a land without peace.
by Ran Tal
with Micha Bar-Am, Orna Bar-Am, Barak Bar-Am, Nimrod Bar-Am
Israel / United Kingdom / USA 2022 Hebrew, German 89’ Black/White & Colour Documentary form

With

  • Micha Bar-Am
  • Orna Bar-Am
  • Barak Bar-Am
  • Nimrod Bar-Am

Crew

Written and Directed by Ran Tal
Editing Nili Feller
Sound Design Aviv Aldema
Production Manager Karin Etedgi
Producers Sarig Peker, Ran Tal
Executive Producers Nancy Pomagrin, Yael Melamede
Co-Production Salty Features New York

Produced by

Grapevine Shoot Productions

Ran Tal

The filmmaker was born in Israel in 1963. His documentaries use a social and historical perspective to focus on today's Israel. He has won numerous national and international prizes including Israel’s Ophir Award. He currently leads the documentary filmmaking programme at the Steve Tisch School of Film and Television, Tel Aviv University. He is also founder and editor of “Takriv”, an online magazine dedicated to documentary film.

Filmography (documentaries)

1996 Malka Lev Adom (Skin Deep); short film 1999 Derech Ben Tzvi 67 (67 Ben Tzvi Road) 2005 Beit Chalomotay (My Dream House) 2007 Yaldey Hashemesh (Children of the Sun) 2008 Shuv Nolad (Born Again) 2009 Gitai Mechapes Et Hacarmelb (Gitay in Search for His Carmel) 2012 Gan Eden (The Garden Eden) 2016 Zman Yehudi (Jewish Time) 2017 Hamozeon (The Museum) 2019 Shanim Shel Tikva (Years of Promise and Rejection) 2021 Ma Haya Eilu. Ehud Barak Al Milchma VeShalom (What if? Ehud Barak on War and Peace) · 1341 Framim Mehamatzlema Shel Micha Bar-Am (1341 Frames of Love and War)

Bio- & filmography as of Berlinale 2022