Avi Nesher (Hebrew: אבי נשר; born 13 December 1952) is an Israeli film producer, film director, screenwriter and actor.
He rose to prominence with his directorial debut, HaLahaka (1979), which has become one of the most loved films in Israel. Nesher then directed Dizengoff 99 (1979), a comedy-drama about life around Dizengoff Street in the 1970s in Tel Aviv. His 1984 film, Rage and Glory, won critical acclaim overseas while being controversial in Israel for its subject content and release during the First Lebanon War.
Nesher then embarked on a career in Hollywood, releasing English-language films such as Doppelganger (1993), starring Drew Barrymore.
Nesher resumed his filmmaking career in Israel with the box office smash hit, Turn Left at the End of the World (2004). He has since directed films such as The Secrets (2007), The Matchmaker (2010), Past Life (2016), The Other Story (2018), Image of Victory (2021), Gan Kofim (2023) and Our Loves (2026).
Contents
Early life
Avi Nesher was born in Ramat Gan, Israel and later raised on the Upper West Side in Manhattan in New York City. His father was a diplomat from Czernowitz, and his mother came from Yedenitz in Bessarabia. His parents were Holocaust survivors, his father was in labor camps in Romania and his mother lost all her family. In 1965, he moved with his family to the United States. He graduated from Ramaz School and studied international relations at Columbia University. In 1971 he returned to Israel. Nesher enlisted into the IDF elite special forces unit Sayeret Matkal where Yoni Netanyahu was his superior. He served for a year, before being injured. He then studied international relations for two years at Columbia University before returning to the IDF. He fought in the Yom Kippur War in 1973 and lost two close childhood friends.
Film career
In 1978, Nesher directed and produced his first film, The Band, which depicted an army entertainment troupe similar to the Lehakat HaNahal (Nahal band). The film stars many of the leading actors and singers of that era, including Gidi Gov, Gali Atari, Sassi Keshet and Heli Goldenberg, most of whom served in military entertainment troupes themselves. The film was a great commercial success in Israel (600,000 viewers), received excellent reviews and gained cult film status. The movie production, accompanied by the composer Yair Rosenblum, who was musical director of the Nahal Military Group and composed the songs the band also appear in the film.
In 1979, Nesher directed his second film, Dizengoff 99, about three young friends living together in a flat on Dizengoff Street, the center of nightlife in Tel Aviv. The film is based on the experiences of Nesher himself, when he lived with two friends in Tel Aviv. The soundtrack of the film included songs performed by Zvika Pick, Riki Gal, Gali Atari and various Israeli bands. It was also a hit (450,000 viewers) and achieved cult film status in Israel. In 1980 Nesher directed HaPakhdanim (Hebrew: "הפחדנים", lit. The Cowards), a moderate commercial success (120,000 viewers).
In 1984, Nesher wrote, directed and produced the film Rage and Glory which tells the story of the underground Zionist group Lehi and their struggle against the British Mandate in the 1940s. The film stars Juliano Mer, Hana Azoulay-Hasfari, and Roni Finkovitz. The movie caused a political storm, was lauded by international critics and in 2001 was selected by the Lincoln Center Film Society as one of the most important films in fifty years of Israeli cinema.
In 1985, Nesher produced Shovrim, about a group of youngsters making a Rock opera parody film of the biblical story of David and Goliath.
After seeing Rage and Glory, producer Dino De Laurentis convinced Nesher to come to Hollywood. Consequently, Nesher wrote and directed the sci-fi mystery Timebomb for MGM (produced by Rafaella De Laurentiis) and starring Michael Biehn. In 1993 he directed Doppelganger for 20th Century Fox, starring Drew Barrymore. Both films won prizes at the Avoriaz Science Fiction and Fantasy Festival in France.
In 1998, Nesher wrote, produced and directed the independent feature Taxman the story of tax investigator Al Benjamin (played by Joe Pantoliano) who stumbles over a series of bloody murders and gets involved in an investigation with a rookie cop. The New York Times called the film "A delight...a charmer of a mystery" and Jeffrey Lyons of NBC called it "A cinematic gem...Not to be missed!"
Personal life
He is married to the Israeli artist, Irish Nesher, whom he met when she was an extra on his 1984 film, Rage and Glory.
In 2018, Nesher's seventeen-year-old son, Ari, was killed in a hit and run by driver, Manamto Asefa in Tel Aviv.
His daughter, Tom Nesher, is also a director.
Awards and recognition
In 2008, Nesher received the Extraordinary Achievement Award at the Jerusalem Film Festival. In 2009 he won the Cinematic Excellence Award at the Haifa Film Festival and was accorded a star on "The Avenue of the Stars" - an honor rarely bestowed on directors. In 2010 Nesher received the Landau Award for Excellence in the Arts. In 2017, Nesher received the Outstanding Achievement Award from the Israeli National Association of Theatres Owners, their highest award for cinematic box-office success.
Director award, Avoriaz Fantastic Film Festival 1992
Director award, Taromina Film Festival 2004
Spirit of Freedom award, Jerusalem Film Festival 2005
Best screenplay, Jackson Hole Film Festival 2007
Lifetime achievement award, Israeli Film Festival 2007
Extraordinary Achievement Award at the Jerusalem Film Festival 2008
Lifetime achievement award, Washington Jewish Film Festival 2010
Landau award for cinematic excellence 2010
Outstanding Achievement Award for Box Office Success 2017
Best Director Award, Israeli Film Critic Association 2018
Torchbearer in the national Israeli Independence Day ceremony, 2019
Lifetime Achievement Award, Israeli Ministry of Culture and Sport 2018
Excellence Award, Academy of Israeli Motion Pictures, 2021