My First War
Israel, 2008, 80 min, Hebrew, English subtitles
"In the summer of 2006, I was suddenly drafted as a reserves soldier in the Second Lebanese War. Instinctively, I grabbed my video camera and thread a shoelace, securing it around my neck right next to my rifle. I said to myself this camera will mediate between myself and the reality into which I was thrown – the reality of war."
Yariv Mozer documented feelings of frustration, helplessness, depression and sleepless nights. Situations of military entanglement, conflicting orders, the dead and wounded. After he had filmed his friends and the events around him during the war, the accusations, and the confession at the end, he started looking for the same soldiers that he had bumped into and were now burnt into his memory – they had become the heroes of his film.
Theme Song: "If There Is Heaven", By Eyal Golan, music and lyrics by Doron Medalie.