WFF SHORT WINS OSCAR

West Bank Story - the closing short of the Williamstown Film Festival's 2005 season - received the Academy Award for best live action short at the annual ceremonies in Hollywood on February 25th.

Ari Sandel's wickedly funny parody transposes the action of a famous American musical to the Gaza Strip, with employees of Kosher King pitted against their arch-enemies at Hummus Hut. Against a backdrop of camels, singing religious zealots, and whirling dervishes, the star-crossed romance between an Israeli soldier and a Palestinian cashier narrowly saves the day and establishes a tenuous peace.
 
Seeing the film at Sundance, WFF director Steve Lawson almost died laughing and immediately lobbied the director to bring  West Bank Story to Williamstown. Because of its popularity, it was reprised as part of the special celebration of shorts at the Gala last fall. Several other WFF titles - Spellbound, Shadow of the Vampire, The Illusionist - have been nominated for Oscars, but this marks the first time that a film has won following its festival showing in Williamstown.
 
"It's a wonderful tribute to Ari's talent," notes Lawson. "And how great that - thanks to the Oscar - his truly hilarious film will now find the wider audience it deserves."