ATOM EGOYAN IS 2008 DAN DAVID PRIZE WINNER
By Avi Weinryb

Comic Book Bin
l
May 20 2008
Canada

The Bar-Shira Auditorium at Tel-Aviv University was packed with
cinephiles today, eager to see Canadian-Armenian filmmaker Atom
Egoyan. In Israel as a guest lecturer and recipient of the 2008 Dan
David Prize, Egoyan delivered a stunning lecture on the Armenian
genocide, using his critically acclaimed film Ararat (2002) as a
springboard for discussing the representation of history in art,
and the tragically unending efforts of the Turkish government to deny
the atrocities of the past.

The Academy Award nominated filmmaker (The Sweet Hereafter, 1997)
took time to acknowledge his own past, and share his journey into
his forgotten Armenian heritage and his formative years in Toronto
, where he first decided to become a filmmaker. It was a revealing
lecture which was followed by a candid question and answer period.

Poster art for ‘Ararat’

This month will see the premiere of Egoyan’s latest film, Adoration
(2008) at the Cannes Film Festival. It was selected as a finalist
for the Palm d’Or Award. It stars Rachel Blanchard and Scott Speedman.

The Dan David Prize is an annual award of $1 million each for three
categories of recipients. As a prize laureate, Egoyan will donate ten
percent of his winnings to deserving doctoral students and researchers
within the field of cinema studies.