The Boy Who Wanted To Be A Book

A film by Katya Chelli

The Boy Who Wanted To Be A Book image

About the film:

Amos Oz, considered during his lifetime to be not only the greatest Israeli writer of his time, but also one of the greatest writers in the world, passed away on December 28th, 2018. I had the immense privilege of having a close friendship, lasting some four decades, with this unique man. The year before he died, Amos agreed that I should make a film about him and I promised it would focus on his greatest passion – writing.

Being born on May 4th, 1939, made Amos one of the early Sabras and a witness to the birth of the State of Israel. Political fanaticism was a concept well-known to Amos from a very young age since he saw it expressed in his own family by his great uncle Joseph Klausner, a “Revisionist Zionist”. Today it is more important than ever to draw attention to Amos’s diverse and prescient body of work given the atrocities wreaked on Israel by Hamas on October 7th, 2023, and the ensuing and on-going war.

His voice of wisdom and sanity is so greatly missed today that the need to turn to his literature for a better understanding of Israel, its people and fanaticism is now an urgent matter. It is worth noting that Shimon Peres, one of the founding fathers of the state of Israel, referred to Amos as “a prophet”.

Throughout his literature, Amos’s clear-sighted and profound reflections on fanaticism and his capacity for empathy teach us to understand “otherness”. He encourages us to question our own humanity.

THE FILM:

Amos was always more interested in finding out about my life and that of my family, and in talking about the history of Israel and current politics, than in discussing his own writing with me. Given that he is, alas, no longer here, my film THE BOY WHO WANTED TO BE A BOOK is essentially my personal quest to deepen my understanding and appreciation of Amos’s life’s work and share it with the world. Almost all the participants in the film knew Amos well and most of them worked with him on his literature in one capacity or another.

NILY OZ, his wife for some sixty years and the very first person to read his manuscripts; FANIA OZ-SALZBERGER, Professor Emerita of history at the University of Haifa School of Law, Amos’s eldest daughter and co-author with her father of Jews and Words; ROBERT ALTER, Professor Emeritus of Hebrew and comparative literature at the University of California, Berkeley, who translated the Bible and published the first biography AMOS OZ, Writer, Activist, Icon in 2023; NICOLAS DE LANGE, Professor of Hebrew and Jewish Studies at Wolfson College, Cambridge, translated Amos’s literature for almost 50 years; JEAN MATTERN, Editorial Director at Christian Bourgois Editeur, France, was Amos’s editor at Gallimard for 17 years.

The list also includes other editors and translators; people who adapted Amos’s novels to music, stage and screen; Israeli writers of the younger generation, etc.

I am also greatly honoured that Sir SIMON SCHAMA, renowned historian, has agreed to participate. The participants come from different parts of the globe, different cultures, and each of them has something unique to offer. Together they will contribute to demonstrating the incredible universality of Amos’s work. The wonderful actor, Hugh Bonneville, has very kindly agreed to read selected extracts from Amos’s works. Amos will himself be present in the film thanks to archives of him talking about his books and writing. And thanks to my close relationship with the Oz family, I have access to certain materials never seen before.

I must add that THE BOY WHO WANTED TO BE A BOOK is also a personal homage, and I will, therefore, be present.

GETTING THE FILM MADE:

Regarding the financing of the film, I have been working for over two years to raise the money for this very important film. I have received personal donations thus far in the amount of $40 000. I am applying for a range of grants, but, as everyone knows, this is a laborious, very lengthy and uncertain process.

I still have a long way to go, but a promise is a promise, and THE BOY WHO WANTED TO BE A BOOK will see the light of day come hell or highwater!!!

If you should wish to learn more about my project, watch the teaser for the film, the Webinar and Abraham Events presentation, etc. please visit the website below, where you can also sign up to receive my newsletters.

https://www.amosozthefilm.com/

And for those who agree with me that this film is important and timely please press the DONATE button on the website. I will be eternally grateful, as will future generations no doubt!

Filmmakers Collaborative is a 501C3 non-profit organization, therefore all contributions made in the U.S. are tax-deductible.

Thank you for taking the time to read this!

Katya Chelli