The Cakemaker

production details

Original Title              האופה מברלין

International Title   
The Cakemaker  
Genre
Drama
country of production
Israel & Germany
length
105 Min
format
DCP | 2.39 | 5.1.
languages
Hebrew, English, German  with English subtitles

a Production of Laila Films, Tel Aviv
in Co-Production with Film Base Berlin

shot in Jerusalem  and Berlin January/February 2016 
International premiere
Competition at Karlovy Vary, July 4th 2017 

CURRENTLY RELEASED IN ISRAEL AND CZECH REPUBLIC, UPCOMING RELEASES: USA, SPAIN, KOREA, ARGENTINA, AUSTRALIA, JAPAN, FRANCE, GREECE, CHILE and more.

synopsis

Thomas, a young German baker, is having an affair with Oren, an Israeli married man who has frequent business visits in Berlin. When Oren dies in a car crash in Israel, Thomas travels to Jerusalem seeking for answers regarding his death. Under a fabricated identity, Thomas infiltrates the life of Anat, his lover’s newly widowed wife, who owns a small Café in downtown Jerusalem. Thomas starts to work for her, creating German cakes and cookies that bring her Café to life. Thomas finds himself involved in Anat’s life in a way far beyond his anticipation. To protect the truth he will stretch his lie to a point of no return.





special mentions

Winner - Cinelab Award, Pitch Point Jerusalem Film Festival 2016
Talent Project Market - Berlinale Talents - 64 Internationale Filmfestspiele 2014 Crossroads - Agora Film Market, 54th Thessaloniki Film Festival 2013 Winner - Development Grant - Jerusalem Film & Television Fund 2012
Jerusalem Film Festival Speed Dating Pitch Program 2012
The Nipkow Program - berlin 2011

The film was produced with the support of The Rabinovich Foundation for the Arts – Cinema Project With the participation of the Leon Recanati Foundation
Supported by the Cultural Administration, Israel Ministry of Culture and Sport
The Israeli Film Council & the Jerusalem Film Fund  

Winner Of The Ecumenical Jury Award - 52nd Karlovy Vary Film Festival
Winner Of The Jewish Experience Award, Best Editing Award - Jerusalem Film Festival
Winner 2nd Best Feature Film - 44. Internationales Filmwochenende Würzburg
Winner of the Audience Award - Trondheim IFF
Winner of the Critics Award - Miami Jewish Film Festival

director’s statement

set in a melancholic yet vivid portrait of Jerusalem, and based on a personal experience, the film tells of characters who wish to put aside their definitions of nationality, sexuality and religion. It is a story full of love for people, life, food and cinema. It is my story.

The story travels between Berlin and Jerusalem, between east and west, between past and present. In this journey Thomas, who goes to find a cure for a private loss, will encounter an inner-Israeli conflict of religion and secularism. The subject of Kosher, the importance of Shabbat (Saturday), the place of tradition in secular society become a barrier in Thomas’s way to absolution, leads him to doubt every aspect of his own being, and provides him with a different perspective of his love memories.

The metaphoric cure to the wound of the personal tragedy is baking. A sensual, visual, and erotic act, it reminds me of childhood, motherhood and family, with the smell of a yeast spreading in the house on Friday morning. In Judaism baking has a special meaning due to the traumatic memory of ‘there is no food’, which rises specially in the German-Jewish context; and the Jewish religious aspect of baking has a whole system of rules that define what is allowed and what is forbidden. Thomas and Anat must defy these rules and thus defy their surroundings in order to overcome pain and anger and find the path to forgiveness and reconciliation. 




festivals

52nd Karlovy Vary Film Festival - Winner Of The Ecumenical Jury Award
Jerusalem Film Festival - Winner Of The Jewish Experience Award, Best Editing Award
44. Internationales Filmwochenende Würzburg - Winner 2nd Best Feature Film
Miami Jewish Film Festival - Winner of the Critics Award
San Sebastian Film Festival
Bfi London - Southerland First Feature Competition
Chicago International Film Festival
Leeds International Film Festival
Cork Film Festival
Adelide Film Festival
Thessaloniki Film Festival
Scanorama European Film Forum
Minsk International Film Festival
Macao International Film Festival And Awards – First Feature Competition
Goa International Film Festival
Trodenheim Film Festival
Starz Int’L Film Festival Denver, Co
Rutgers New Jersey Jewish Film Festival New Brunswick, Nj
Philadelphia Jewish Film Festival Philadelphia, Pa
Israel Film Festival Los Angeles, Ca
Hamburg Film Festival
The Loft Film Festival Tucson, Az
Rutgers New Jersey Jewish Film Fest New Brunswick, Nj
Inside Out Lgbt Film Festival Ottawa, On, Canada
Palm Springs Int’L Film Festival Palm Springs, Ca
The Jewish Museum New York, Ny
Wesleyan University Middleton, Ct
Boca Raton Jewish Film Festival Boca Raton, Fl
East Bay Int’L Jewish Film Festival Walnut Creek, Ca
Hartford Jewish Film Festival West Hartford, Ct
Maine Jewish Film Festival Portland, Me
New Jersey Jewish Film Fest W. Orange, Nj
Toronto Jewish Film Festival Toronto, On
Palm Beach Israeli Film Series W. Palm Beach, Fl
Trondheim Filmfestival - Winner Audience Award
Paris, Festival du Cinema Israelien de Paris
Vienna, Jüdisches Filmfestival Wien
Zurich, Yesh Festival
Melbourne Queer Festival
Guadalajara (Mexico)
Istanbul Film Festival
Torino
Jeonju
Mallorca
Montreal
Toronto
Madrid
Palm Beach




director

Ofir Raul Graizer is an Israeli  director and video artist. After working for years in different branches, from textiles to gastronomy, he went to study lm in Sapir College, Sderot, in the south of Israel. During his studies, he directed several short lms that were shown in numerous festivals and received worldwide acclaim. After his graduation he co-directed “La Discotheque” which was screened in Cannes Director’s Fortnight and other lm festivals. In parallel, he was accepted for the Nipkow Program, Berlinale Talents, Agora Film Market and other lm workshops. “The Cakemaker” is his rst feature lm. Currently he lives on the line of Berlin-Jerusalem-Uckermark, teaching middle eastern cuisine and developing his next lm projects.


FILMOGRAPHY

LA DISCOTHEQUE
Fiction, 15 Minutes. Chile/France, 2015 - Co-directing with Teresita Ugarte
A retired militant visits a strip-club in Santiago and confronts his past as a torturer.
- Director’s Fortnight, Cannes

MINYAN - THE GATHERING OF THE TEN
Experimental Video Documentary, 46 Minutes. Israel/Germany, 2015

DOR 
Fiction - 27 min - Israel 2009

A PRAYER IN JANUARY
Fiction, 10 Minutes. Israel, 2007


Awards 

Awards of the Israeli Film Academy
Best Actress   Sarah Adler
Best Editing   Michal Oppenheim
Best Screenplay    Ofir Raul Graizer
Best Film
Best Sound   Avi Mizrahi
Best Director  Ofir Raul Graizer

Berlin Jewish Film Festival
Gershon Klein Award
Best Director
Best Israeli Film

Festival du Cinéma Israelién de Montréal
Jury Prize  Ofir Raul Graizer

Festival du Cinéma Israelién de Montréal
Jury Prize   Ofir Raul Graizer

Miami Jewish Film Festival
The Critics Prize Ofir Raul Graizer

Provincetown International Film Festival
John Schlesinger Award   Ofir Raul Graizer

Jerusalem Film Festival
The Lia Van Leer Award   Ofir Raul Graizer
Haggiag Award
Best Editing   Michal Oppenheim

Karlovy Vary International Film Festival
Award of Ecumenical Jury
Ofir Raul Graizer






sales



WORLD SALES
FILMS BOUTIQUE
Köpenicker Strasse 184
10997 Berlin
Germany
Fon +49 30 6953 7850
contact@ filmsboutique.com

credits

CAST    THOMAS    Tim Kalkhof -  ANAT    Sarah Adler   -  OREN  Roy Miller -  MOTI  Johar Strauss -   HANNA   Sandra Sadeh -  ITAI   Tomer Ben Yehuda   - SOPHIA                 Stephanie Stremler -  DANA  Tagel Eliyahu - AVRAM Eliahu Simhon - COSTUMER Gal Gonen - SOLDIER Sagi Shemesh - LIFEGUARD Iyad Msalma - LOCKER ROOM SWIMMER David Heedye Koren - SCRIPT Ofir Raul Graizer  - SCRIPT Ofir Raul Graizer - PRODUCER Itai Tamir - PRODUCER  Mathias Schwerbrock - DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY Omri Aloni  - EDITOR Michal Oppenheim - COMPOSER Dominique Charpentier - SOUND DESIGN & MIX Avi Mizrahi - CASTING  Ami Livne - Johannes Müller - LINE PRODUCER Jiries Copti - ASSITENT DIRECTOR  Sharon Ryba-Kahn  - ART DIRECTOR Daniel Kossow , Yael Bibel - COSTUME DESIGN Lilu Goldfine  - SOUND Sven Junge - CAMERA ASSISTENT Jana Fitzner  - GAFFER  Florian Baumgarten - 2.nd DIRECTORs ASSITENT /Extra Supervisor Gal Gonen - BOOM Eric Petzold, Tal Dorot, Elad Habusha, Hani Gal-Ed , Mahmoud Halawani - ELETRICIAN /Best Boy Matan Gershovitz - ELETRICIAN Martin Gasch - ELETRICIAN  Tobias Köppe, Jakob Ulrich-Gerbe - MAKE UP  Alexandre da Costa Barbosa - PRODUCTION COORDINATOR  Yuriko Okamura, Itay Akirav LOCATION MANAGEMENT Tatjana Liebenow, Tareq Mabid PRODUCTION MANAGEMENT Muhanad Halawany  UNIT PRODUCTION Tareq Mabid SET RUNNERS Jose Maria Carrizo, Shiri Lanton  Omer Schwarz PRODUCTION ASSISTANT Amos Geva FOOD STYLIST Eran Badihi  STORYBOARD ARTIST Tim Brackmann, Erez Reznikov, Hanna Lemke, Tal Dorot ROLLER DESIGN Anna Lukashevsky ASSISTENT EDITOR Assaf Fine EDITOR COUNSELING Haim Tabackman, Ora Eyal  EXTRAS Lisa Marie Becker, David Ezra, Karmo Migur, Kirstin Flade, Michael Giulbudagean, Thomas Liebenow, Birga Liebenow, Rainer Elstermann, Svelana Frank, Manfred Kossow, Nitai Potash,  Timor Shilav, Daniel Kossow, Mati Gal, Tal Dorot, Derek Allen, Gild Avny, Matan Gershovitz , Elad Golan, Nehamia Mas, Yael Angel, Inbar Fargo, Yair Kremer, Emma Graizer, David Graizer, Macabit Avrahamzon, Noam Shanan, Yoezer Gabai, Mahmud Hallawani, Jack Silver, Shaul, Samuel, Lorenzo, Daniela and Sina  SOUND STUDIO DB Studio, Tel Aviv, Gil Toren, Ronit Shalvi, Moshiko Moshe EFFECTS & FOLIES Andres Rapaporte, Nin Hazan, Shlomi Keslin, MIXING STUDIO DB Surround MUSIC composed and performed by Dominque Charpentier Arranged by Guillaume de Chirac  Recorded in Studio des Amandiers, Paris LAB Cinelab Bucharest CATERING Jerusalem Yossi Stark Nisreen Mazen - CAMERA EQUIPMENT BERLIN ARRI Rental Deutschland GmbH Ute Baron, Stefan Düll, Janett Springer, Anne-Rose Schluze, Volker Frank-Palm PRIMA VISTA TEAMS und Technik GmbH & Co. KG INSURANCE GERMANY Mr. Mohr (Caninenberg & Schouten GmbH) TAX CONSULTANTs Althaus & Drabeck AGENCIES Above The Line , Linda Lysenko, Katrin Wans  Agentur Factory Gisela Haarmann-Böndel The Jerusalem Municipality Film and TV Manager Daniel Dorani- Filmed in Café Kredenz, Berlin  and Cavalier in Jerusalem - THANKS, Uta Ganschow, Petra Weisenburger , Nora Hoppe, Roman Paul, Katharina Wicke,  Noga Almi, Meital Abekasis, Efrat Corem, Alon Hershkowitc-Abekasis, Ulrike Strempel, Kathi Bildhauer, Matthijs Wouter Knol, Dafna Serring, Micki Cohe n, Piotr J. Lewandowski, Avner Feingelernt, Eliyahu Zigdon, Sylvia Finzi, Lina Gartzmann, David C. Barrot , Pari Garvanos, Moritz Richard Schmidt,  Soeren Kittel Schmidt, Anna Minayev, Anna Somershaf, Inbal Rapson,Liora Katziri, Christine Camdessus, Bastian Von Bümches, Sigal Golan, Yuval BenYehuda, Shani Ben Yehuda, Annette Genz, Macabit Abramson, Renen Schorr, Sari Turgeman, Moran Weissfish, Asaf Ben David, Nizar Hassan, Hahai BenKuzari, Angeliki Vergou, Philipp Homberg, Roland Zag – The Human Factor, Andreas Klöckner und das ganze Goldhahn und Sampson Team, post perfect Vision & Sound, Stephan Herzog, Hannes Rossow, Christoph Hoppe", Meni Timor, Dan Levi, The Train World, Jerusalem, Remez Familie, Nitai and Eco, Mahne Yehuda, Nissan Nativ Acting Studio, Jerusalem, The Aloni Family, Ratzekatz Spielzeugland, Oregano Spices, Mahne Yehuda, Galia Cakes, Jerusalem, Merav Beckerman Marks , Katarina Wörner, Itai Akirav, Yael Zegelstein, Gilad Wiener, Yoram Kadman, Noga Kadman, Erez Marchini, Roasters, Jerusalem, The Hebrew Youth Club, Jerusalem, The Jerusalem Hostel, Zion Square, RW+ Wolfram Sinapius Daniel Haarmann, Maria Bojarzynska und Andrzej, Café Kredenz, Berlin SPECIAL THANKS  Dominique Welinski, Tal Dorot, Ram Mizrahi Spinoza, Idan Peretz "The Graizer Family: David, Emma, Amir, Ariel” "Familie Kossow: Manfred, Sabine, Alexander” The School of Film and Television, Sapir College, for years of giving and endless support

We thank gracefully for everyone that has participated, helped und took part. 

SONGS by:  "Crazy People" The Hazelnuts Vocals & Arrangements: Yifeat Ziv, Talya Amzaleg & Shira Z. Carmel  Recorded, Mixed & Mastered by Yuvi Gerstein
"Take a Deep Breath" The Hazelnuts Vocals & Arrangements: Yifeat Ziv, Talya Amzaleg & Shira Z. Carmel Recorded, Mixed & Mastered by Yuvi Gerstein"
“Rain"Faran Roi Smila, Gad Tidhar, Refael Ben Zichry
"
"Love Comes in Waves” Faran Roi Smila, Gad Tidhar, Refael Ben Zichry
"Port Said” Sabir Yotam Honig Galia Eltaratz

This film was produced with the support of  The Rabinovich Foundation for the Arts – Cinema Project With the participation of the Leon Recanati Foundation
Supported by the Cultural Administration, Israel Ministry of Culture and Sport The Israeli Film Council” Giora Einy, Yoav Abramovich, 
Nachman Ingber, Yossi Oren, Yael Simhony, Ronit Kenan, Nehama Wohlberg

For Rosella