Fill the Void

Fill the Void
Fill the Void
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Rama Burshtein
Written by	Rama Burshtein
Produced by	Assaf Amir
Starring	Hadas Yaron; Chaim Sharir; Ido Samuel; Irit Sheleg; Yiftach Klein; Hila Feldman
Cinematography	Asaf Sudry
Edited by	Sharon Elovic
Music by	Yitzhak Azulay
Production; companies	Reshet Broadcasting; Avi Chai fund; Sundance
Distributed by	Sony Pictures Classics (US)
Release dates	1 September 2012 (Venice); 18 October 2012 (Israel);
Running time	90 minutes
Country	Israel
Language	Hebrew
Box office	$2.4 million

Fill the Void (Hebrew: למלא את החלל - lemale et ha'ḥalal) is a 2012 Israeli drama film written and directed by Rama Burshtein. It focuses on life among the Haredi Jewish community in Tel Aviv, Israel. Hadas Yaron stars as Shira Mendelman, an 18-year-old girl who is pressured to marry her older sister's husband, following the death of her sister in childbirth.^[3]

The film required a lengthy production period, taking over a year for the casting to be completed, and another year and three months for editing. Burshtein, who was doubtful as to how much of the process would be completed, took a step-by-step approach, focusing first on the writing, then on accumulating enough funding for the project, followed by the filming and editing. Burshtein became the first Haredi Jewish woman to direct a film intended for wide distribution.^[4] The film premiered at the 69th Venice Film Festival on 1 September 2012,^[5]^[6] and was later released in the United States on 24 May 2013.^[7]

Fill the Void was well received by critics for its depiction of Haredi Jews and their lifestyle. It won seven Israeli Academy Awards, and lead actress Hadas Yaron won Best Actress for her portrayal of Shira at the Venice Film Festival.^[8]

^ "Fill the Void". BBFC. Retrieved 25 February 2014.
^ "Fill the Void (PG)". Box Office.com. Archived from the original on 17 July 2013. Retrieved 19 July 2013.
^ "Fill the Void (Lemale et ha'chalal)". Variety. 2 September 2012. Retrieved 12 September 2012.
^ Cite error: The named reference Dawson was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Fisher, Gabe (1 July 2012). "Two Israeli films to get world premiere at Venice festival". Times of Israel. Retrieved 5 July 2013.
^ Anderman, Nirit (5 September 2012). "Venice film critics wowed by ultra-Orthodox Jewish director's debut". Ha'aretz. Retrieved 5 July 2013.
^ "Fill the Void". The Hollywood Reporter. 2013. Retrieved 4 July 2013.
^ Cite error: The named reference Miller was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[BBFC-1] "Fill the Void". BBFC. Retrieved 25 February 2014.

[boxoffice-2] "Fill the Void (PG)". Box Office.com. Archived from the original on 17 July 2013. Retrieved 19 July 2013.

[Variety-3] "Fill the Void (Lemale et ha'chalal)". Variety. 2 September 2012. Retrieved 12 September 2012.

[Dawson-4] Cite error: The named reference Dawson was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[5] Fisher, Gabe (1 July 2012). "Two Israeli films to get world premiere at Venice festival". Times of Israel. Retrieved 5 July 2013.

[Anderman-6] Anderman, Nirit (5 September 2012). "Venice film critics wowed by ultra-Orthodox Jewish director's debut". Ha'aretz. Retrieved 5 July 2013.

[HR-7] "Fill the Void". The Hollywood Reporter. 2013. Retrieved 4 July 2013.

[Miller-8] Cite error: The named reference Miller was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

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