The 2013 ceremony for the Ophir Awards for Film (known as the “Israeli Oscars”) was held in Israel on Sept. 28. The big winner this year was the movie “Bethlehem” by director Yuval Adler, which deals with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through a portrayal of the relationship between a Shin Bet agent and his Palestinian source.

Winning six Ophir Awards, including best picture, continued the film’s success around the world. “Bethlehem” participated in prestigious festivals in Toronto, Telluride and Venice. At the latter, it won best picture in the Venice Days category. The movie joins other recently released Israeli films that also deal with the conflict from various angles.

“Out in the Dark,” by Michael Mayer, deals with a romance between a young Israeli and a Palestinian man whose brother is wanted by the IDF. The film is about to be screened in New York. “Rock the Casbah,” by Yariv Horowitz, which portrays the experiences of an Israeli soldier in the crazy reality of Hebron, participated in the Ophir competition last year. This year it won the International Confederation of Art Cinema Award at the Berlin International Film Festival and prizes at other film festivals in France and Italy.

The greatest success for Israeli documentaries came this year when two Israeli films were nominated for the foreign language Oscar. “The Gatekeepers,” the wonderful film by director Dror Moreh, deals with the testimonies of six former Shin Bet directors, who speak openly about the conflict and its management on the Israeli side. “Five Broken Cameras,” by Israeli director Guy Davidi and Palestinian director Emad Burnat, tells the story of the Palestinian village Bil’in, where a longstanding and persistent protest has been held against the separation wall.