News of the Muse

In a highly competitive year, the winners in the Docaviv Festival's competitions, which were announced on Tuesday, reflect the diversity of the festival.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Diversity in Docaviv winners In a highly competitive year, the winners in the Docaviv Festival's competitions, which were announced on Tuesday, reflect the diversity of the festival. The winner in the Israeli category, Three Times Divorced, directed by Ibtisam Mara'ana, is the story of a Palestinian woman from Gaza who marries an Israeli, then gets divorced and loses custody of her children. A Special Jury Nomination Award in the Israeli competition went to Nadav Schirman's Champagne Spy, about the life of Israeli superspy Wolfgang Lotz. The international winner, Journey in G Major, directed by Georgi Lazarevski of France, tells the story of a 91-year-old violinist who takes a trip to Morocco. Two films about war won special jury prizes in the international category: A Story of People in War and Peace, by Vardan Hovhannisyan, about the battles between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh region, and Boris Lojkine's Wandering Souls, the story of former North Vietnamese soldiers searching for the remains of their colleagues on the battlefield. The Docaviv Festival runs until Saturday at the Tel Aviv Cinematheque and other venues throughout the city. Hannah Brown Gesher's literary manager dies Lina Laskina, the Gesher Theater's well-liked and much appreciated literary manager, died last week of cancer. Born in Moscow, Laskina graduated from the University of Moscow with a degree in languages and until her immigration in 1990 worked as a translator for the Progress publishing house. Her first job in Israel was as an editor for various Russian language publications. She joined Gesher in 1994. She is survived by a daughter and a sister. Laskina was buried at Kibbutz Eynat. Jerusalem Post staff Brenner's Diaspora display A rare exhibition entitled "Diaspora: Homelands in Exile" by the internationally renowned photographer Frederic Brenner is set to open next week. Over the past 25 years, Brenner has traveled around the world photographing 40 Jewish communities along his way. The exhibit of 94 photographs will be displayed in Jerusalem's Beit Avichai as of March 28. Brenner, who will be visiting Israel for the exhibit's opening, has planned a special lecture in English (with simultaneous Hebrew translation) for students called "Tales of Frederic Brenner's Travels". The lecture, scheduled for March 29 at 9p.m., costs NIS 20 and will be accompanied by the live music of Oy Division. For more information, visit Beit Avichai's Web site: www.bac.org.il. Miriam A. Shaviv Dead Sea extravaganza The 11th Ahava Festival at the Dead Sea is billed as one of the best. From April 3-7, there will be a vast array of activities available for familes, including day trips, nature walks to historical sites, horse riding, and more. The Hol Hamoed festival also boasts the biggest rock celebration in Israel, featuring Aviv Gefen, Evyatar Banai, Ehud Banai, Arkadi Duchin, Barry Sakharov, Hagiraffot, Mashina, Ivri Lider and Shalom Hanoch. Events will take place in three different sites along the Dead Sea. For information, go to www.dead-sea.org.il. For tickets to the shows go to www.klaimonline.co.il. Miriam A. Shaviv