Over 350 Film Industry Figures Sign Letter Defending Israeli Director Nadav Lapid Against Cultural Boycott

Nadav Lapid, an Israeli director known for award-winning films critical of Israeli society and government, was initially invited to serve on the jury of the FID Marseille International Film Festival (July 7–12) but withdrew after approximately ten filmmakers threatened to pull their films from the festival's selection. The controversy centered on partial funding — roughly 12% of the budget — that Lapid's 2025 film 'Yes' received from the Israel Film Fund, which critics view as an arm of the Israeli state, though the Fund operates independently and has historically supported liberal and anti-government voices. Two separate open letters published in Le Monde, collectively signed by over 350 industry figures, condemned the boycott: one called it 'an intellectual failure' and argued that artists should not be reduced to their passports, while a second, titled 'Cinema Is Not an Embassy,' denounced what it called a 'campaign of intimidation.' Signatories drew parallels to dissident Russian and Iranian filmmakers, pointing to Russian director Andrei Zvyagintsev's use of his Cannes Grand Prix acceptance speech to condemn Putin's war in Ukraine as evidence that continued engagement is more politically effective than exclusion. Lapid himself expressed frustration at the escalating pressure, warning that fear of controversy is causing festivals to self-censor, and said the boycotting filmmakers' actions reflect 'powerlessness, anger and immense frustration at the political inaction around Gaza,' while reiterating his own support for genuine political sanctions against Israel. The filmmakers who withdrew their films, organized in part under the collective 'Palestine Will Save Cinema,' argued they were refusing a 'cultural and political model' rather than condemning Lapid as an individual.