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Home > Screenings > Albatross World Sales > Israel - Land of Contrasts

Director: Michael R. Gärtner

Producer: k22 Film & Entertainment

Executive Producer: Ralf Blasius,Wolfram Giese

Writer: Michael R. Gärtner

Genres: Documentary, Factual

Demographics: All audiences

People: k22 Film & Entertainment, Michael R. Gärtner, Ralf Blasius, Wolfram Giese


2x52’ 4K

A land of ancient lore, where humans first departed Africa, known as part of the ‘Cradle of Civilization’, where first were kindled the technologies and belief systems that would shape and direct world history, Israel might just hold the keys to its flourishing in the millennia to come. In a naturally dry and unforgiving environment, resilience and perseverance were the qualities that not only allowed survival but fostered an innovative spirit that has been fundamental to life here as far back as history allows us to see. In a world now beginning to experience the effects of runaway climate change, Israel is emerging as a world leader in adaptation, increasingly exporting its practices and technologies to areas where the old ways no longer cut it. 11,000 years ago, domesticated agriculture had its beginnings here. It now boasts the most tech start-ups per capita of anywhere in the world. It is where ingenuity has often taken precedence over pure labor, but it is also a place that seeks equilibrium in the natural order. There is an overriding interest in preserving the primacy of nature in the face of an exploding population weighing ever more heavily on resources: the reintroduction of extinct and endangered wildlife and plant life in the understanding that while the human animal may master nature, it is nevertheless still its custodian.

These two films will pick out such themes through the sweep of history, looking at how the Animal, Mineral, Vegetable, and Human Kingdoms interact and intersect to make Israel a Cradle of the Future.