From the movie "The Beehive"/courtesy of United King Films
In the new and shocking Israeli film "The House on Finn Street" Nika Buck plays a young woman who was kidnapped to work in the sex industry.
Before filming, she set out to conduct research in the area where the film takes place - the surroundings of the old central station in Tel Aviv.
"I wanted to really explore reality, go out into the real streets of Neve Shanan, get to know the women on the street, develop a conversation with them," the actress says in an interview with Walla!
culture.
"I went several times. I met a woman who allowed me to ask questions and shared her life with me. At one point she told me fascinating things. She told me to keep telling, that it doesn't matter at all what laws are passed. Even if they start fining men, they will still continue to do what they did before, and if they close the institutes for her and her friends, then they will rent an apartment by themselves and continue working. She said to me - 'Where will I go next? What do you expect me to do? I am a forty-year-old woman, and society will not let me leave the circle. Even before I Saying what I do for a living, people raise their eyebrows when they hear my age.' She asked me a request - 'If you have the option to talk someday, please tell the truth, and that's what I'm doing now.'
And this is also what "The House on Finn Street" does.
This is a film that tells the truth, and the truth is ugly and hard.
Kudos to director Amir Manor for creating such an uncompromising film.
Kudos to United King, who are distributing it, right now, and kudos, of course, to the team of actors and actresses - Nika Buck, who turns out to be a great talent in her first role, with a face full of expression and power: Imrie Beaton, as the young man who seduces her and traps her in the building for which the film is named, in which she is required to serve Various men - including lawyers who cooperate with this industry: Rami Hoiberger, in one of his most violent roles, as the manager of the business, who doesn't care about anything - not even in finger amputations: and Raymond Amsalem, who won an Ophir award for her role as one of the oldest women in the place, who suffers from oppression and continuous exploitation, including a particularly difficult scene in which a police officer abuses her.
And despite all this, the film also has sparks of hope, and it describes how some of the characters try, despite everything, to find redemption.
An actress full of expression and power.
Nika Buck in "The House on Pin Street"/Guy Raz
The film was already filmed five years ago, and because of its special nature, its distribution was delayed even more than usual in the crowded Israeli market.
In the current timing, of course, it is impossible not to see it from a different perspective.
"There is a scene in the film that was particularly difficult to film - the moment when they take my character and put her in a pit underground," Buck says.
"It was hard to shoot this scene in real time, and now it's even harder to think about it. It's simply unimaginable that there are women who are also underground right now. The story of the film does not take place against the background of the conflict, but it does show severe violence against women, which is something we hear about It's on him now all the time in the context of the war. A woman in this situation is in a state of lack of control, where you can do whatever you want with her and she has no control over her fate. I wanted to present this situation in the most realistic way possible, and this was the biggest challenge for me while making it."
Finn Street has already changed its face, but the industry the film depicts still exists, right under our noses.
"The film asks us to ask ourselves how we allow all this to happen a meter from us, five minutes from Rothschild. This is a reality we all know exists, and it exists of course not only in Tel Aviv but all over the world. Women are still kidnapped and women and human beings are still trafficked."
There are many interesting artistic choices in the film.
One of them: unlike many previous films on the subject, and although it has many sex scenes, there is no female nudity in it.
"This was a deliberate and very clear choice by the director Amir Manor. The goal was to distance as much as possible from the objectification of the characters. If we had seen nudity on the screen, the attention would have gone to the wrong place, because nudity is not the point in any way. After all, we wanted to tell about trade In women, about the illogical reality that is happening nowadays, about the fact that women are taken and abused and denied freedom of movement, so why do we see naked women? Nudity, like everything in art, needs to have a justification, and here there was no such justification. This is a choice I strongly agree with." .
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"It was hard to shoot this scene in real time, and now it's even harder to think about it."
Nika Buck/Dylan Yosef Sheetrit
Your character is silent often and for long periods of time.
How challenging was it to play Silence?
"On the one hand, it's difficult not to lean on a text. On the other hand, it doesn't allow me to live in the moment. When you're waiting for your text, you think about the moment that's yet to come, but the silence allowed me to be in the moment and live the here and now. The choice was not to hold on In words, but to present the reactions through the expression and the body, and this was an interesting choice."
One of the main characteristics of your character is the complex relationship with her mother.
Did your mother watch the movie?
"My family didn't watch the movie, and I don't think they ever will. My mom saw the trailer and had a hard time with it. It's hard for a mom to see her daughter in such situations, and maybe she shouldn't either."
Your family lives in Ashkelon.
How did you experience the last period?
"As an Ashkelonite, I am unfortunately used to rockets and running from place to place, but of course the beatings we suffered are not close to that of the Otaf settlements or the Nova. Like everyone else, my brother was thrown into the reserves and we were constantly waiting for him to return. Like every mother in the country, my mother faced the fear And with the question of where her son is and what will happen to him. It's anxiety - terrible anxiety. Unfortunately, both my brother and my little brother have lost people. My brother lost his best friend - a childhood friend who grew up with him."
"My family hasn't seen the movie, and I don't think they ever will."
From "The House on Pin Street" / Guy Raz
Since the shooting of the film, Raymond Amsalem has become one of the most prominent figures in Israeli cinema thanks to "Sheva Baruchot", the huge hit that won the Ophir, and also one of Buck's close friends.
"She is one of the women I most admire and appreciate in the world," says the actress.
"Sometimes I tell myself that fate led me to accept the role just to get to know her and connect with her. The friendships that came out of working with her are friendships for many years to come. During the filming, I needed them to hug me and give me a hand and remind me that what I'm going through in front of the camera is not the real reality mine. Raymond supported me and so did all the other crew members. Amir the director would approach me with sensitivity, cry with me and give me as much time as I needed. Imri was also there by my side and watched over me."
You haven't acted since that movie.
Why?
"I discovered that I wanted to experience our field from other angles and positions. Because I never had the financial ability to go to school, I did it from the field. I have worked in recent years as a dresser and producer, and I got to direct a music video myself. I really want to create an entire work that will be completely mine. Beyond Because there was Corona in the middle, my break from the world of acting was a conscious choice because I needed rest and time for myself, but I really want to play."
"My brother lost one of his best friends in the war."
Nika Buck/Ella Lorient
What roles would you like to do?
"I would also like to act in comedies and make the audience laugh, but I am drawn to worlds that have some kind of reflection of reality and a statement about it. I want to take part in more projects that confront the audience with things we run away from on a daily basis."
It was not an easy conversation.
Is there still something optimistic that can be said at the end?
"I'm not sure. The thing I'm most hoping for is the return of the abductees, and then we can focus on repairing the trauma. If you're looking for something optimistic, there's a lot of optimism in repairing and growing out of darkness. We have a lot of room to move forward and from here we can only go up. I think it's possible to create A corrective experience through art and creativity."
More on the same topic:
Imary Beaton
Raymond Amsalem