Promised Land

Under the Sinai desert moon, a group of young women from Eastern Europe

warms up in front of a camp fire. These people are part of a clandestine

convoy led by Arabs on camels. The group is on the border of Israeli

territory, to where these young women will be taken as victims of the

lucrative white slave trade. These girls have no choice and their

future is to be put up for auction like cattle. They’re frequently

subjected to all sorts of violence and abuse in exclusive prostitution

clubs. For these expatriates, without families and friends, there are

few options left for a genuine human contact. Yet, one of the local

night club madams tries to provide these girls with a little comfort,

and a few close bonds are formed between them. However, they don´t have

anything to look forward to in this unpromised land.

Born in Haifa, Israel, in 1950. His works are presented at Mostra since the 20 th edition, in 1996, with The Arena of Murder. In 2004, at the 28 th Mostra, he was honored with an exhibition of his photos, the publishing of a book and a complete retrospective of his films, including Kadosh (1999) and Kedma (2002, awarded with the Critics Prize at the 26 th Mostra). He directed a short film in the collective project Welcome to São Paulo (2004), produced by Mostra. He has also directed Free Zone (2005), Disengagement (2007) and Ana Arabia (2013). Gitai won the Humanity Award at the 31 st Mostra, in 2007. The director also presented at the 38 th Mostra with the films Tsili (2014) and Words with Gods (2014). He exhibited at the 41 st Mostra the feature film West of the Jordan River (2017).

43ª MOSTRA INTERNACIONAL DE CINEMA

43ª MOSTRA INTERNACIONAL DE CINEMA