THE STORY OF ME & AISH
My name is Ehud Sopher, the writer and driector of Aish, a short film about anti-semitism and a Jewish identity crisis.
I grew up in the modern-orthodox Jewish community, frankly, always feeling disillusioned by my faith, and religion in general, But, evidently, I’ve also felt bound by my roots.
Directing on the set of Day 9, my thesis film at NYU Tisch
Still from Day 9
I devoted my thesis film at NYU Tisch, Day 9, to psychoanalyzing the religious customs of my upbringing, the film becoming a finalist at the school's film festival. Only a year later, for reasons unknown, the idea for Aish entered my brain:
Back in 2019, I put this story of Aish on the shelf of my mind. Five years later, the real-time wave of anti-semitism we thought was a relic of the past has awoken the psyches of many Jews around the world, myself and this project included.
WHY YOU SHOULD CONTRIBUTE
In these chaotic times, there is little-to-no art depicting the complex, existential inner-dialogue bouncing around the brains of many Jews, the survival instincts kicking in regardless of religiosity.
Aish is a cinematic insight into this never-ending identity crisis for Jews: trying to overcome our traumatic past by seeking acceptance in a new society that is eventually tempted to repeat it.
I feel that the need to humanize us through film is an existential emergency. If you share this urge, and feel constricted by the tribalistic media's depiction of us, contributing to nuanced art is a tangible way to be part of the change in society's perception.
WHY A SHORT FILM? WHERE DOES IT GO?
The beauty of the short film format is focusing high levels of meaning and emotion into a digestible runtime, but also the timeliness of getting it out to people. Whereas a feature film can require over a year between filming and release, a short film can be shot and get a timely topic in festivals and online within a few months
While we cannot guarantee the path of any film, short films have the potential to rapidly reach audiences around the world. Our plan is to submit to the top-tier festivals (e.g. Sundance, Cannes, SXSW, Toronto, etc.), and many more Oscar-qualifying festivals, which give filmmakers the chance at competing for an Academy Award. We won't count out the power of online streaming platforms, which festivals have learned to coexist with, as films that go viral on Youtube and Vimeo are increasingly striking deals with major studios.