British director Ken Loach has shared his support for Jonathan Glazer’s Oscar acceptance speech.
While accepting the award for Best International Film for The Zone Of Interest, Glazer refuted his “Jewishness and the Holocaust being hijacked by an occupation which has led to conflict for so many innocent people”.
While many have shown their support for Glazer’s speech, he has received criticism from The Holocaust Survivors’ Foundation USA.
In addition, many Jewish members of the creative industry have signed an open letter claiming he was “fuel[ling] a growing anti-Jewish hatred around the world”.
Speaking with Variety, Loach said that he had “great respect” for the director, calling him “very brave”. He said: “And I’m sure he understood the possible consequences, which makes him braver still, so I’ve got great respect for him and his work.”
He also spoke about the Jewish community, saying that Glazer received: “Lots of support from many, many Jewish people who said it breaks the stereotype that all Jewish people support what Israel is doing, because clearly that’s not the case … [The speech] was hugely valuable in that it shows that diversity. So I’ve got great respect for what he did.”
It’s not the first time Loach has expressed his opinion on the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, and the military action on Gaza. At the BAFTAs in February, Loach posed with screenwriter Paul Laverty, who held up a poster which read: “Stop the massacre”.
According to The Guardian, Loach also revealed information about a project he had tried to launch, which was about the Middle East: “That was a subject that I would have liked to have worked on, but I didn’t know quite how to tackle it,” he said.
“It would have had to be a documentary, but it was a big project and certainly beyond me for the last decade.”
Elsewhere, Olly Alexander has confirmed that he will not be boycotting this year’s Eurovision Song Contest, despite Israel’s inclusion in the competition.
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