“Come Closer”, interview with director Tom Nesher

At the 16th Bari International Film & Tv Festival, FRED Film Radio interviewed the director Tom Nesher to talk about “Come Closer”, a film presented at the Meridiana section.

The transition between adolescence and adulthood

“Come Closer” deals with many different themes, one of these is the transition between adolescence and adulthood. A transition that implies, in a certain way, a loss. “Being a teenager is such an interesting time because you remember from those times only the most highlighted events”, says Tom Nesher. “You’re so emotional in that time and you’re saying goodbye to a lot of parts of yourself and parts of your life and you’re becoming an adult. And this thing is something that you can see throughout the film. The main character is losing her brother, she is losing her family in some way but then she’s finding her own independent way and her way to become a more mature person which could be sad but could also be a beautiful thing that happens in nature that you find your place as an adult”.

The audience reception of the film

At the heart of “Come Closer” is the love story between the two protagonists that arises after a loss that affects both of them. How was the film received by the Israeli audience? “It was so beautiful. The movie was hugged by the Israeli public in such a powerful way”, explain the director. “I tell this story that comes from a very personal place of my own life and I feel like my generation could have less boundaries and you don’t need to be identified as lesbian or as anything else to be able to fall in love with a person who happens to be a woman or to have this meaningful relationship with someone because they also lost someone that you both love and you mourn together over that person. So it’s really beautiful to see the way that the generations changed”.

Society remains in the background

In ‘Come Closer’, the director shows a montage on the phones of the two protagonists that tells about the society in which the girls live. But everything remains in the background. “In this montage you see a protest and children that go to the school trip to Auschwitz. These are two very dramatic things in Israeli society. But still the film is not about that. Those events are just in the background of this love story”, says Tom Nesher. “You see them texting, laughing, falling in love and that is the main thing of that scene. I chose to write it because I wanted to see how even the most dramatic backdrop for a teenager, it’s just a backdrop. You’re so invested in your personal story, in your loss, in your love”.

Plot