Jews fail to dispel 'control of Hollywood' myth

If Jews ever wanted to dispel the myth that they control Hollywood, the 85th Academy Awards nominations on Thursday did not help the cause.

Legendary Jewish director Steven Spielberg's US presidential drama Lincoln led the pack of Oscar nominees with 12 nominations including a nod for best picture, in the race for the world's top film honors. Spielberg was also nominated for best director.



The Oscars are given out by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and this year's winners will be named at a ceremony in Hollywood on Feb. 26.

Daniel Day-Lewis, whose mother is Jewish, was nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his portrayal of the US president in Spielberg's movie.

In the Best Actor in a Leading Role category, Alan Arkin was nominated for his role in Argo.



While Jews such as Spielberg and Daniel Day-Lewis may be no stranger to Oscar success, Israeli cinema has only started to feature prominently at the Oscars in the past decade or so. This year is no exception with no less than two Israeli films nominated in the best documentary category.

Five Broken Cameras, directed by Emad Burnat and Guy Davidi, and The Gatekeepers, directed by Dror Moreh, were among the five nominees culled from 126 films in the category, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Thursday.



The Gatekeepers features interviews with six former directors of the Shin Bet security service.

Five Broken Cameras documents the first years of life for Burnat's baby against the backdrop of the West Bank village of Bil'in's battle against the Israeli security fence. Five of Burnat's cameras were smashed by the IDF as he documented friends and family members being shot and injured by Israeli troops. The film won the documentary director's award this year at the Sundance Film Festival.

Reuters and JTA contributed to this report