Overview

• The ministry says state support for the Israeli Academy’s awards will end with the 2026 budget, with Miki Zohar calling the ceremony disgraceful and the film’s portrayal of soldiers defamatory.
• ‘The Sea,’ an Arabic-language drama by director Shai Carmeli-Pollak and producer Baher Agbariya, won best film and became Israel’s official Oscars submission for international feature.
• The film also took best screenplay, best actor for 13-year-old Muhammad Gazawi, best supporting actor for Khalifa Natour, and best original score, following support from the Israel Film Fund.
• The Israeli Academy defended its members’ vote as an affirmation of artistic freedom and highlighted the movie’s Jewish–Palestinian collaboration as representative of Israeli cinema.
• The Association for Civil Rights in Israel and legal experts questioned whether the minister can lawfully pull the funding, as the politically charged ceremony featured anti-war messages and ongoing international boycott calls targeting Israeli film institutions.