Amit Breuer

Amit Breuer (Hebrew: עמית ברויאר ) is a Canadian-Israeli documentary filmmaker and producer.[ 1] [ 2] She is the founder of Amythos Media, formerly known as Amythos Films.[ 3]

Amit Breuer was born in Israel and received her Bachelor of Arts in general history of art from the Tel-Aviv University in 1983.[ 3] [ 4] Following her graduation, Breuer studied cinematography at Beit Zvi Institute of Cinema, Ramat Gan.[ 4]

Breuer founded Amythos Films, an Israeli independent documentary production company, in 1993.[ 3] In 2004, she moved to Toronto, Ontario, Canada and brought her company with her.[ 3] The company was later renamed Amythos Media. Amythos Media has produced award-winning documentaries including Testimonies, St. Jean, On the Edge of Peace, The Guantanamo Trap, Sentenced to Marriage, Junction, Checkpoint, and Purity.[ 5]

In 2006, Breuer cofounded the Voices Forward Festival with Stacey Donen, which they aimed to build a bridge between Israeli and Palestinian communities.[ 6] The festival featured movies, art exhibits, music performances, lectures and plays.[ 7] Amit served as the artistic director until 2009.[ 8]

In 2006, Amit Breuer co-founded the DocAgora Association, an organization that hosts events and forums on the documentary film industry at festivals and markets worldwide.[ 9] She also served as the association's president until 2009.

Breuer produced Planet Sin, a series of short films centered around the seven deadly sins in 2011.[ 10] [ 11] The shorts were screened at Shorts Under the Stars in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.[ 10] Later that year, she co-produced Love Letters to the Future, a transmedia project designed to send messages about climate change to future generations.[ 3]

In 1993, St. Jean won Best Documentary for the Wolgin Award for Israeli Cinema, Jerusalem film Festival and the Israel Academy Awards.[ 5] [ 22] Human Weapon was featured in the Middle East Studies Association FilmFest and won Special Commendation from Prix Europa in 2002.[ 18]

In 2003, Checkpoint won many awards including Best International Documentary at the Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival; best feature-length documentary at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam; the Golden Gate Award for Documentary Feature at the San Francisco International Film Festival; and the Docupolis Award for Best Documentary in Barcelona Docupolis.[ 24] [ 25] Later that year, Purity won the Fipa d'Or Award for Creative Documentary; the International Documentary Film Festival's Special Documentary Award; the Jerusalem Internal Film Festival's Mayor Award for Best Documentary Film; the SCAM Prize's Discovery of the Year; and both the Citizens Prize and Special Prize from the Yamagata International Documentary Film.[ 26]

Love Letters to the Future won two Webby Awards for the Green Category and the People's Choice Award in 2010. It also won a Gemini award for Best Non-fiction Series Online.[ 2] [ 27] In 2011, The Guantanamo Trap won the Best Canadian Documentary Award from the National Film Board of Canada and the Special Jury Prize at Hot Docs Film Festival.[ 14]

In 2001, Breuer served as a member of the jury to select award winners for the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam.[ 28]

She also served as a moderator in 2012 and a presenter in 2013 at South By Southwest, an annual film, interactive media and music festival in Austin, Texas.[ 29] [ 30] She has also served as a juror for the CPH DOX Copenhagen Amnesty Award.[ 29]