Israeli Film Archive Jerusalem Cinematheque

The Jerusalem Cinematheque is a cinematheque and film archive in Jerusalem, Israel. Founded in 1973 by Lia van Leer, it developed from a film institution operating in Beit Agron, in central Jerusalem, into a purpose-built cultural venue overlooking the walls of the Old City near the Hinnom Valley. The current building opened in 1981 with support from the Ostrovsky Family Foundation, the Jerusalem Foundation, the Van Leer Foundation, and private donors. The institution combines public cinema programming with the preservation and interpretation of moving-image heritage. Its principal archive, the Israel Film Archive, holds films dating from the 1920s to the present and serves as a repository for Israeli film history and related audiovisual material. The archive gives the Cinematheque a role that extends beyond exhibition: it supports the safeguarding of historical films and makes them available for research, cultural programming, and public engagement. The Cinematheque’s facilities and collections include screening halls, the Nathan Axelrod Newsreel Collection, the Joan Sourasky-Constantiner Holocaust Multimedia Research Center, the Department for Film and Media Education, and the Lew and Edie Wasserman Film Library. Together, these units connect theatrical film exhibition with archival preservation, historical documentation, education, and scholarship. As a Jerusalem cultural institution, the Cinematheque provides a venue for film viewing and for engagement with cinema as an artistic and historical medium. Its positioning is therefore broader than that of a conventional commercial cinema: it functions as an archive-centered cultural organization whose activities encompass film screenings, collection stewardship, educational work, and research access. The institution is also associated with Jerusalem’s wider film culture, including the city’s international film-festival ecosystem, although the available reference material does not establish all details of its current programming or governance.

The Jerusalem Cinematheque was established in 1973 by Lia van Leer. Its early location was Beit Agron in central Jerusalem, where the institution began developing its role as a venue for film exhibition and as a base for film preservation and cultural activity. A major institutional transition took place in 1981, when a new Jerusalem Cinematheque building opened near the Hinnom Valley and overlooking the walls of the Old City. The building project was supported financially by the Ostrovsky Family Foundation, the Jerusalem Foundation, the Van Leer Foundation, and private donors. Its location and dedicated facilities enabled the Cinematheque to operate as a substantial public film and cultural center rather than solely as a small screening venue. The Cinematheque houses the Israel Film Archive, whose holdings cover films from the 1920s through the contemporary period. This archival function places the organization within the history of Israeli film preservation and provides an institutional home for the collection, care, and use of audiovisual heritage. The archive’s scope connects early film materials with later Israeli cinema and supports the broader interpretation of the country’s moving-image history. The institution’s work is distributed across several complementary components. In addition to screening halls, it includes the Nathan Axelrod Newsreel Collection, which preserves newsreel material; the Joan Sourasky-Constantiner Holocaust Multimedia Research Center; the Department for Film and Media Education; and the Lew and Edie Wasserman Film Library. These facilities indicate an operating model that combines public exhibition with archival research, historical documentation, education, and library-based access to film resources. Through this combination, the Jerusalem Cinematheque has become a Jerusalem-based cultural institution serving audiences interested in cinema as entertainment, art, historical evidence, and an educational subject. The available reference material does not provide a complete account of later renovations, digitization programs, leadership changes, budgets, attendance, or current programming. Those areas require verification from the institution’s current official materials or additional reliable sources.

• 1981

  Purpose-built Cinematheque building opened

  [1]Jerusalem Cinemathequeen.wikipedia.org

  A new building overlooking Jerusalem’s Old City walls near the Hinnom Valley opened with support from foundations and private donors.

• 1973

  Jerusalem Cinematheque founded

  [1]Jerusalem Cinemathequeen.wikipedia.org

  Lia van Leer founded the Jerusalem Cinematheque, initially operating from Beit Agron in central Jerusalem.

An archive-led cinematheque and public film institution in Jerusalem, positioned at the intersection of cinema exhibition, Israeli audiovisual preservation, research, education, and cultural heritage.

• Film archive

  Israel Film Archive

  The Israel Film Archive is the institution’s principal archival collection. It contains films dating from the 1920s to the present and provides a foundation for preserving, studying, and presenting Israeli and historically relevant moving-image materials.

• Newsreel archive

  Nathan Axelrod Newsreel Collection

  A specialized collection housed by the Cinematheque and dedicated to newsreel material associated with Nathan Axelrod. It forms part of the institution’s documentary and historical audiovisual resources.

• Research center

  Joan Sourasky-Constantiner Holocaust Multimedia Research Center

  A multimedia research center housed within the Cinematheque and focused on Holocaust-related audiovisual and research materials.

• Education

  Film and media education

  The Department for Film and Media Education extends the Cinematheque’s work beyond screenings by providing an institutional base for educational engagement with film and media.

• Film library

  Lew and Edie Wasserman Film Library

  A film-focused library housed at the Jerusalem Cinematheque, supporting access to reference and research resources related to cinema.

1. 1Jerusalem Cinemathequeen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Jerusalem Cinematheque and Israel Film Archive official websitejer-cin.org.il