Assaf Amir
Assaf Amir is an Israeli filmmaker and television and film producer, former chairman of The Israeli Producers Association and the current chairman of The Israeli Academy of Film and Television.
Early life and education
Amir was born in 1954 in Rehovot and grew up in Bat-Yam. During his childhood, he was a child actor at the Habima National Theatre.Amir studied cinema and philosophy at the City College of San Francisco and continued his studies at The New School for Social Research in NYC. During his time in New York, he met his future wife, artist Orly Maiberg.
Media career
Film
Upon his return to Israel, Amir began producing films. He was the executive producer for Aviya's Summer and Israeli Academy Awards for Best Film Winner Life According to Agfa.In 1994, Amir founded Norma Productions, an independent production company. His first independent production was Elia Suleiman’s Chronicle of a Disappearance in 1996. It won the Best First Film Prize at the Venice International Film Festival.
In 1997, Amir produced Pick a Card, which won the Israeli Academy Award for Best Film.
In 2003, Amir produced Nir Bergman's Broken Wings, which won the Israeli Academy Award for Best Film and the Audience Award at the Berlinale film festival. Amir collaborated with Bergman again in 2010 producing his film Intimate Grammar.
In 2005, Amir produced What a Wonderful Place, which won the Israeli Academy Best Film Award, and the Special Jury award at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
During the following years, Amir produced the films Noodle, The Loners and Zion and His Brother.
In 2012, Amir produced Rama Burshtein's debut film Fill the Void, which won the Israeli Academy Best Film Award and the Best Actress award at the Venice International Film Festival.
In 2016, Amir went on to produce Burshtein's next film, The Wedding Plan.