Shira Arad (Hebrew: שירה ארד, born July 4, 1972) is an Israeli

film editor Film editing is both a creative and a technical part of the post-production process of filmmaking. The term is derived from the traditional process of working with film stock, film which increasingly involves the use Digital cinema, of digital ...

and musical supervisor. She is a former DJ and TV actress. In 2016 she received the

Ophir Award The Ophir Awards (), full name: the Israel Film Academy Award, sometimes also known as the Israeli Oscars or the Israeli Academy Awards, are film awards for excellence in the Israeli film industry awarded by the Israeli Academy of Film and Tele ...

for Best Film Editing, for the movie

Our Father The Lord's Prayer, also known by its incipit Our Father (, ), is a central Christian prayer attributed to Jesus. It contains petitions to God focused on God’s holiness, Will of God, will, and Kingship and kingdom of God, kingdom, as well as h ...

. Since 2020 Arad is a member of the

European Film Academy The European Film Academy is a group of European film director, filmmakers who come together in Berlin on the occasion of the first presentation of the European Film Awards in November 1988. Every year, the European Film Academy honors films an ...

Early career

Arad studied acting at

The Poor School The Poor School and Workhouse Theatre was a drama school situated in King's Cross, London, United Kingdom. The Poor School was created in 1986 by former Royal Central School of Speech and Drama vocal coach Barbara Caister in response to the nee ...

in London, graduating in 1995. In that same year she was the assistant director of

Hanoch Levin Hanoch Levin (; December 18, 1943 – August 18, 1999) was an Israeli dramatist, theater director, author and poet, best known for his plays. His absurdist style is often compared to the work of Harold Pinter and Samuel Beckett. Biography Lev ...

in the play ''Beheading'' at

Habimah Theatre The Habima Theatre ( ''Te'atron HaBima'', lit. "The Stage Theatre") is the national theatre of Israel and one of the first Hebrew language theatres. It is located in Habima Square in the center of Tel Aviv. History Habima was founded as an ...

. She began her acting career in the play '' The Physicists'' at the Left Bank theatre. She later performed in the play ''

The Crucible ''The Crucible'' is a 1953 play by the American playwright Arthur Miller. It is a dramatized and partially fictionalized story of the Salem witch trials that took place in the Province of Massachusetts Bay from 1692 to 1693. Miller wrote ...

'' at the

, directed by Shmulik Hasfari (1999), and in the play ''My Kinneret'' at the Beersheba Theater (2002-2002). At the same time, Arad appeared various children's programs on Channel One. In 1999, she played in the Israeli film '' Yana's Friends'', directed by Arik Kaplun. In 2001 she played in the Israeli telenovela ''Touching Happiness'', in which she played Karin. In the same year she played in the series ''Closed File'', written by

Reshef Levi Reshef Levi (; born 13 March 1972) is an Israeli screenwriter, playwright, film director, producer, writer, comedian and television presenter. Winner of the Israeli Theatre Award and the Israeli Academy of Television Award. Levi is married with sev ...

. In 2001, Arad began working as a DJ and

music supervisor A music supervisor is a person who combines music and visual media. According to the Guild of Music Supervisors, a music supervisor is “a qualified professional who oversees all music related aspects of film, television, advertising, video game ...

. In 2008, she was the music researcher for the feature ''

Borat ''Borat'' (also known as ''Borat! Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan'') is a 2006 mockumentary directed by Larry Charles, which stars Sacha Baron Cohen as Borat Sagdiyev, a fictional Kazakhs, Kazakh jou ...

'' starring

Sacha Baron Cohen Sacha Noam Baron Cohen ( ; born 13 October 1971) is an English comedian, actor and performance artist. Known for his creation and portrayal of the fictional satirical characters Ali G, Borat Sagdiyev, Brüno Gehard, and Admiral General Haf ...

. Arad currently works as a film editor. In 2013 she participated in the

Berlinale Talent Campus The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...

of the

Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...

. In 2005, Arad married singer

Kobi Oz Kobi Oz (, , born Ya'akov Uzan (, ) on 17 September 1969) is the lead singer of Israeli group Teapacks. Biography Yaakov Uzan was born on 17 September 1969 in Sderot to Tunisian Jewish parents who moved to the British Mandate of Palestine in ...

. In 2009 they divorced.

Cinematic career

In 2009, Arad participated in the DocChallenge competition as part of the DocAviv Festival and won the editing prize for the documentary ''The Walking Man'' directed by Noam Pinchas. In 2011, she edited Li At Glick's film ''Bright Night'', which participated in the

. Arad edited ''Heder 514'', directed by Sharon Bar-Ziv in 2012. The film was nominated for six prizes at film festivals around the world, and won a special mention at the

Tribeca Film Festival The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by Tribeca Enterprises. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive programming. The festival ...

, and the Best Director at the Granada Film Festival,

Cines del Sur Cines del Sur is an international film festival in Granada, Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost ...

. In 2013, Arad edited ''Mind the Gap'', a short film by Tom Darom, which won the Best Film Award at the Impro Festival, and participated in the Haifa Film Festival 2013. Another short film ''Michtav MeHaAvar'' (A Letter from the Past) by Ofer Zingerman was nominated for the 2014 Ophir Awards. Between the years 2010-2014, Arad served as editor of promos and video works for various productions at the

Gesher Theater Gesher Theater is an Israeli theater company founded in 1991 in Tel Aviv by new Olim from the Soviet Union. Defending Identity: Its Indispensable Role in Protecting Democracy, by Natan Sharansky, 2008, pp 139ff. It performs both in Russian and ...

, and performed multimedia for Kreutzer Sonata directed by Yevgeny Aryeh, and ''Falling Out of Time'' directed by

Yehezkel Lazarov Yehezkel Lazarov (; born 8 February 1974) is an Israeli actor, director, and multidisciplinary artist. In 2022 he was elected to serve as the head of the school of Performing Arts at the Kibbutzim Seminary College. Biography As a child, Lazaro ...

. In 2015 she edited two feature films: Meni Yaesh's second film, Our Father, and Arik Rothstein's first film, ''Antenna''. In September 2016, she won the

for Best Film Editing for editing ''Our Father''. In October 2016, she won the editing prize for Antenna at the Haifa International Film Festival. In 2018 she edited the documentary film "Family in Transition" which won the prize for best film at the DocAviv Festival. In 2019 Arad edited the feature film

Incitement In criminal law, incitement is the encouragement of another person to commit a crime. Depending on the jurisdiction, some or all types of incitement may be illegal. Where illegal, it is known as an inchoate offense, where harm is intended but ma ...

, a psychological thriller detailing the year leading to the assassination of Israel's Prime Minister,

Yitzhak Rabin Yitzhak Rabin (; , ; 1 March 1922 – 4 November 1995) was an Israeli politician, statesman and general. He was the prime minister of Israel, serving two terms in office, 1974–1977, and from 1992 until Assassination of Yitzhak Rabin, his ass ...

, from the point of view of the assassin. The film received the 2019 Ophir Award for Best Picture, and was selected as the Israeli entry for the Best International Feature Film at the

92nd Academy Awards The 92nd Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored films released in 2019 and took place on February 9, 2020, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, beginning at 5:00 ...

. In 2020 Arad was chosen to be part of the

. She is the first Israeli film editor to be invited to the academy. In 2021, Shira edited the mini-series, "After Midnight: The Darkest Secret in Town", by Keren Shayo. Shira was nominated for Best Picture Editing in the 2022 Israeli Academy Awards for her work on the series. In 2023, Shira edited the documentary film "Poliker: The Child Within Me". The film opened the DocAviv International Film Festival and was nominated for the Best Documentary Award in the Israeli Academy Awards 2023. It also won the audience choice awards for Best Documentary in the Israeli Film Festival in LA, 2024. Shira was both editor and co-writer of this film.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Arad, Shira Israeli film editors Living people Israeli film actresses Israeli stage actresses Israeli DJs 1972 births Women film editors Ophir Award winners