THE FILM
SYNOPSIS
"Legend of Destruction" tells the story of the Jewish revolt against the Roman Empire that escalated into a devastating civil war, ending in the destruction of the Second Jewish Temple in 70 CE.
The film uses a unique style of animation, made of 1500 original still paintings.
The plot follows the naively idealistic young Ben Batich (voiced by Oscar Isaac). Noticing the social injustices and corruption in Jerusalem, he joins the zealots in their rebellion against Rome. As Ben Batich begins to grasp the consequences of his actions, it is already too late to prevent the impending doom.
​​Based on Talmudic legends and the accounts of Yosef Ben Matityahu (Josephus Flavius), Legend of destruction depicts the dangers of greed, social injustices, corruption, polarization, political hubris, and, above all, religious fanaticism in the name of God. These events took place some 2000 years ago, yet they resonate deeply with our times.
THE CREATORS
GIDI DAR
(Ushpizin)
Gidi Dar is one of Israel’s top filmmakers, he is known for his fearless, innovative, high quality creative work. He is the creator of the groundbreaking animated film “Legend of Destruction”, which reaped 7 nomination and 4 wins at the 2021 Israeli Film Academy Awards. He is known as the writer, director and producer of “Eddie King“, winner at the Locarno film festival 1992, and director-producer of “Ushpizin“ (2004). which became immensely popular in Israel and the US. Gidi also wrote and directed the award-winning children’s series “The Children from Napoleon Hill and Deus, and the Documentaries Shine and The Last Wilderness. His latest film The Badchan is to be released soon.
SHULI RAND
(Ushpizin)
Rand is a widely acclaimed actor and singer/songwriter. At the beginning of his career, he appeared as the lead roles in many films such as the widely acclaimed "Life According to Agfa" and "Ushpizin"- both earning him best actor award, and "Eddie King". On stage he played "Hamlet", "Woyzeck" and more. In recent years he has starred in roles in films such as "The Unorthodox”, as well as the series "Shtisel" and "Autonomies". Most recently he played the lead role in "Legend of Destruction" and the soon to be released film “The Badchan”, which he co-wrote with Dar.
THE CREATIVE PROCESS
About eight years were spent developing and producing the film, including three and a half years of concept development, initial sketches and storyboarding, followed by four and a half years of producing the illustrations. Polonsky and Faust reviewed books, visited the Temple Institute in Jerusalem, and used the model of Jerusalem from the Israel Museum to accurately depict Jewish life during this period
The paintings ranged in style from a detailed realism reminiscent of Neoclassicism to a more free-form expressionist aesthetic. Some of the illustrations were influences by famous 20th century paintings, some were inspired by well-known people from real life, while others were based on photos that the artists posed for themselves.
DAVID POLONSKY
David Polonsky was born in 1973 In Ukraine and immigrated to Israel in 1981 where he pursued an education at the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem. Polonsky’s illustrations have been featured in major Israeli publications and numerous award-winning children’s books, such as the graphic adaptation of Anne Frank's diary, "The Diary of a Young Girl", which was adapted for film later. Polonsky earned international acclaim as the art director and lead artist for the Oscar-nominated animated documentary Waltz with Bashir (2008, and The Congress (2013). Legend of Destruction won him Best Art Design at the Israeli Academy Awards.
MICHAEL FAUST
Michael Faust is a painter, animator and production designer. Faust has won multiple international awards for his first animation short Beton (2006), including the Special Distinction Award in the Annecy International Animation Festival of 2007. He has worked as a production designer in many films, including Waltz with Bashir (2008). In 2021, Together with Polonsky, Faust won Best Art Design for his work on the film Legend of Destruction (2021). His latest short film Island (2022) has already received several awards, including the City of Annecy Award from the Annecy International Animation Film Festival in 2023. Faust teaches art for animation at the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design, and at Sapir College, Israel.
