A Tribute to Billy Wilder – In Memory of Edna Fainaru

Few filmmakers have moved as freely and masterfully between genres, periods and moods as Billy Wilder, while leaving an unmistakable mark on every film they made. Over a career

spanning more than five decades, Wilder created some of the greatest and most beloved films in American cinema: wild and romantic comedies, dark crime films, and dramas in which humour and melancholy exist side by side. At their centre are almost always people trying to get something – love, money, success, or simply a better life – only to discover that getting there is far more complicated than they imagined.

Wilder was born in 1906 in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, began his career as a journalist and screenwriter in Berlin, and fled Europe following the rise of the Nazis. In Hollywood, he first became one of the industry’s most sought-after screenwriters and later one of its defining directors. Writing was always at the heart of his cinema: meticulously constructed plots, razor-sharp dialogue, characters full of flaws and weaknesses, and above all a clear-eyed, sometimes ruthless but almost always deeply human view of the society around him. The four films selected for this tribute – Double Indemnity, Sabrina, Some Like It Hot and The Apartment – were made between 1944 and 1960 and reveal the extraordinary range of his work, from the darkness of film noir to the heights of romantic comedy.

We dedicate this tribute to Billy Wilder to the memory of Edna Fainaru, who passed away this past June and who, for many years, was an integral part of the Arava Film Festival family. Edna devoted her life to cinema. For more than six decades, she worked as a film critic, journalist, editor and artistic consultant to festivals in Israel and around the world, writing for international publications including Variety and Screen International. In 1982, together with her life partner Dan Fainaru, she founded the film journal Cinematheque, which for many years provided an important platform for serious writing on film in Israel. In recent years, Edna and Dan were closely involved in shaping the artistic programme of the Arava Film Festival.

But to us, Edna was far more than the sum of these roles and achievements. She brought with her an immense knowledge of cinema, an endless curiosity and a genuine love for films and the people who make them. Throughout her life, she watched, wrote, debated, recommended and discovered films, always with the conviction that cinema deserved to be discussed seriously, but also enjoyed wholeheartedly. Her generosity, warmth and humour, and the way she shared her knowledge and enthusiasm with others, will be deeply missed. Dedicating this tribute to Edna is our small way of thanking her, and of returning together to four unforgettable films.