From Oscars to Tribeca 2025: “Dead Language” Marks Israeli Filmmakers’ Comeback

The feature film Dead Language, directed by Michal Brezis and Oded Binnun, has been selected to compete in the prestigious Viewpoints section of the Tribeca International Film Festival. It will make its world premiere on June 9, 2025, attended by the cast and creators.

The film is an expansion of the directors’ short film Aya, which was nominated for an Academy Award in 2015 and earned them international recognition. The screening will take place within the Viewpoints competition, which showcases innovative and bold works from around the world. Last year, the Israeli film Close to Me, directed by Tom Nesher, won the Best Film award in this category.

The selection of Dead Language for the esteemed Tribeca Film Festival marks a significant achievement for Israeli cinema, underscoring its continued resonance on the global stage. This honor reinforces the unique and vital voice of Israeli filmmaking in the international cinematic landscape.

Dead Language follows Aya, who arrives at an airport to pick up her husband but instead encounters a stranger. An immediate intimacy develops between them, only to be abruptly severed when the man disappears, leaving Aya with an unfulfilled longing that only a stranger seems able to satisfy.

The film stars Sarah Adler and Ulrich Thomsen (The Celebration), reprising their roles from Aya, alongside Yechezkel Lazarov, Gal Malka, and Lars Eidinger (Persian Lessons). The screenplay was written by Brezis and Binnun in collaboration with their previous partners: Tom Shoval, co-writer of Aya, and Amital Stern, who co-wrote their film The Etruscan Smile, starring Brian Cox and Rosanna Arquette, which enjoyed global distribution, box office success, and critical acclaim.

Dead Language is an Israeli-Czech-Polish co-production, produced by Green Productions and United King Films, with support from the Rabinowitz Foundation for the Arts, the New Fund for Cinema and Television, the Czech Film Fund, and the Polish Film Institute, in partnership with Keshet Films and Armoza Productions.