Abayenesh - Studio Darom Participants 2023
Synopsis
A new sister arrives at the Andrege family, a family of Ethiopian descent, and declares that she is the daughter of the father of the family who was killed in Ethiopia. The mother of the family, Mekdes, is sure that she is an impostor and refuses to accept her. The brothers Tamrat and Nega do not know who to believe. Abayenesh’s arrival plunges the family into a whirlwind that threatens to disintegrate it and raise tragedies from the past. What is Abayenesh true identity?
Esti Almo Wexler | Director
Director and script writer of "Lady Titi" (2018) - the first feature film dealing with Ethiopian-Israelis that was screened commercially in cinemas all over Israel. In 2022 she written and directed "Bunchia" short drama that was screened at the BronzeLens film festival in Atlanta. Born in Ethiopia, Esti immigrated to Israel at the age of four.
After her military service, she opted to study Photography and Screen Based Arts at the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem. She held numerous photography exhibitions and won many awards. Esti went on to study for her Master’s Degree in film and television at Tel Aviv University. Her first film was the short drama Summer of ‘89 (2013), which she wrote and directed. Esti is the creative content director and owner of Abayenesh Productions - a company she established together with Elad Wexler, her spouse.
Elad Wexler | Producer
An Israeli filmmaker. He produced "Lady Titi" (2018) - a feature film and the first film dealing with Ethiopian-Israelis that was screened commercially in cinemas all over Israel. In 2022 he produced "Bunchi" - a short drama that was screened at the BronzeLens film festival. In 2012 Wexler established together with Esti Almo Wexler Abayenesh Productions- which produced several television programs dealing with Israelis from Ethiopian decent. He is one of the founders of The Association for the Advancement of Ethiopian Art- which aims to increase the visibility of Ethiopian Israelis in Israeli television and film. Wexler studied Film and television at Tel Aviv University, and completed his M.A. in history at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He wrote and directed his thesis film, My Dharmasala (2007), in which the hero sails down memory lane, searching for an old love. Wexler received his PhD in history from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.