Rama Burshtein’s film, “The Wedding Plan” has received excellent reviews after making its American debut in New York on May 12. This is the second production for Rama after her first film “Fill the Void,” which came out in 2012.
The movie follows Michal (Noa Kooler), an Orthodox Jewish woman, who is finally looking forward to the comfort and security of marriage, when she is blindsided by her fiancé’s decision to call off the wedding with only a month’s notice. Unwilling to return to lonely single life, Michal decides to put her trust in fate and continue with her wedding plans, believing Mr. Right will appear by her chosen date.
Rama explains the complicated process of creating a second film which she wrote and directed. “It is a troubling process – especially if it’s in the shadow of a successful first one. Either you are trying to repeat your success or you are trying to do something very, very far away from what you did before, so nobody would say that you did it only once. It’s a complicated process.”
“The Wedding Plan” is in Hebrew with English subtitles. Rama resides in Tel Aviv with her husband and four children who range in age from 15 to 20. She was born in Coney Island, NY, but grew up in Israel. She was raised in a secular, openly liberal family, but joined Orthodox Judaism at the age of 27.
Hew newest film, “Is about faith, not religion, it’ not a question of religion at all in my eyes,” says Rama. “It’s a question of being a believer. Being a believer is going with a certain shield in the world that makes you see that the options are open. When you are a non-believer, then everything looks dark and not possible.”
She thinks this movie will engage the viewer to have a dialog within themselves while they are watching, “If he’s a believer or not. If he’s optimistic or not. I think every art that asks the viewer to participate makes it harder,” explains Rama.
“The Wedding Plan” is currently showing in the Valley at Camelview at Fashion Square theater in Scottsdale.
