Joseph Cedar Bio
Joseph Cedar (born August 31, 1968) is an American-Israeli film director and screenwriter whose work bridges Israeli life and universal cinematic storytelling. After studying philosophy and theatre at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and cinema studies at New York University, Cedar built his career with a string of acclaimed films that include Time of Favor (2000), Campfire (2004), Beaufort (2007), and Footnote (2011). His features have earned major honors at Berlin and Cannes, while his television work includes the HBO miniseries Our Boys (2019).
Across more than two decades of filmmaking, Cedar has been recognized for tackling sensitive subjects within Israeli society while keeping his stories accessible to international audiences. His films have collected Ophir Awards, a Silver Bear for Best Director at the Berlin International Film Festival, and a Best Screenplay award at the Cannes Film Festival. In 2025, he was announced as the director of the upcoming feature Useful Idiots, starring Meryl Streep and Sigourney Weaver.
Early Life and Background
Joseph Cedar was born on August 31, 1968, in New York City, New York, United States, into an Orthodox Jewish family. His father is the biochemist Howard Cedar, a figure in his own right who shaped the family’s early years in the United States. The family later moved to Israel when Joseph was six, and he grew up in the Bayit VeGan neighborhood in Jerusalem.
Growing up in Jerusalem, Cedar attended a Yeshiva High School, where his religious education ran alongside his developing interest in storytelling and performance. He later served in the Israeli army as a paratrooper, an experience that would inform some of his later film work. These formative years, split between American origins and Israeli upbringing, gave him a bicultural outlook that continues to shape his perspective as a filmmaker.
Path to Directing
After completing his military service, Cedar enrolled at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he graduated in philosophy and history of theatre. The combination of philosophical inquiry and theatrical study gave him a strong foundation for thinking about narrative, character, and conflict on screen. His time at the university also connected him to the cultural life of Jerusalem, which became an important touchstone in his later work.
Seeking to deepen his craft, Cedar moved to the United States to study cinema studies at New York University. The program sharpened his technical and storytelling skills, and his American roots made the transition easier. When he returned to Israel, he committed himself fully to filmmaking, beginning with the screenplay that would become his debut feature, Time of Favor (2000).
Joseph Cedar Career
Early Career (2000-2004)
Cedar’s directorial debut arrived in 2000 with Time of Favor, a tense political drama set in a West Bank settlement. To prepare for the film, he moved to the Israeli settlement of Dolev and lived there for two years, immersing himself in the community. The film was a major success on the Israeli awards circuit, winning six Ophir Awards, including Best Picture, and announced Cedar as a major new voice in Israeli cinema.
Building on that success, Cedar wrote and directed Campfire (2004), his second feature. The film again won the Ophir Award for Best Picture, while Cedar personally took home Ophir Awards for Best Director and Best Screenplay. These early Ophir wins established a reputation for thoughtful, character-driven dramas rooted in specific Israeli settings.
Breakthrough (2007-2011)
Cedar’s third feature, Beaufort (2007), marked his international breakthrough. Based on his own experiences during his army service on Israel’s border with Lebanon, the film won the Silver Bear for Best Director at the Berlin International Film Festival. It also earned four Ophir Awards and received an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film, the first such nomination for an Israeli film in 24 years.
In 2011, Cedar premiered Footnote in Competition at the Cannes Film Festival, where the film won the award for Best Screenplay. Footnote was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, cementing Cedar’s status as one of the most honored Israeli filmmakers of his generation. The film is a drama about the world of academic scholarship and the relationship between a father and son, both researchers, and it played widely on the international festival circuit.
Later Career (2016-2019)
Cedar’s first English-language feature came with Norman: The Moderate Rise and Tragic Fall of a New York Fixer (2016), an American-Israeli political drama he wrote and directed. The film starred Richard Gere and Lior Ashkenazi, with production beginning in New York City on February 8, 2015. Norman premiered at the 2016 Telluride Film Festival and the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival before being released in the United States by Sony Pictures Classics.
In 2019, Cedar expanded into television as co-creator, co-writer, and co-director of the HBO limited series Our Boys. Co-created with Hagai Levi and Tawfik Abu-Wael, the ten-episode series focuses on the kidnapping and murder of Mohammed Abu Khdeir and premiered on HBO on August 12, 2019. The series was a co-production between HBO and Keshet Studios and brought Cedar’s measured approach to difficult material to a global streaming audience.
Upcoming Projects
In 2025, it was announced that Cedar will direct Useful Idiots, a feature starring Meryl Streep and Sigourney Weaver. The casting of two of Hollywood’s most respected stars signals a significant step in Cedar’s English-language work and points to continued collaboration with major international talent.
Notable Works and Milestones
Cedar’s signature works include Time of Favor (2000), Campfire (2004), Beaufort (2007), Footnote (2011), and Norman: The Moderate Rise and Tragic Fall of a New York Fixer (2016), along with the HBO miniseries Our Boys (2019). Across these projects he has collected Ophir Awards for Best Director and Best Screenplay, a Silver Bear for Best Director at Berlin, and the Best Screenplay award at Cannes, while earning two Academy Award nominations for Best Foreign Language Film.
Joseph Cedar Award Nominations
Joseph Cedar has received two nominations for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film during his career. The first nomination came for Beaufort (2007), the first such recognition for an Israeli film in 24 years, followed by a second nomination for Footnote (2011). These nominations placed Cedar among the most internationally recognized Israeli filmmakers of his era and reflected the strong reception his work received at major festivals in Berlin and Cannes.
Joseph Cedar Awards Won
Cedar has won major awards at the Berlin International Film Festival and the Cannes Film Festival, along with multiple Ophir Awards in Israel. He won the Silver Bear for Best Director at Berlin for Beaufort (2007) and the Best Screenplay award at Cannes for Footnote (2011). His Ophir Awards include six wins for Time of Favor (2000), five wins for Campfire (2004) including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Screenplay, and four wins for Beaufort (2007).
Joseph Cedar Family
Joseph Cedar was born to an Orthodox Jewish family in New York City. His father is the biochemist Howard Cedar. When Joseph was six, the family moved to Israel, and he grew up in the Bayit VeGan neighborhood in Jerusalem. Cedar himself is an Orthodox Jew, a background that informs the religious and cultural textures of his films.
Personal Life
Cedar divides his creative life between Israel and the United States, drawing on both worlds in his work as a filmmaker. His films are known to touch delicate issues of Israeli society, and Israeli critic Yair Rave has praised his ability to merge the Israeli spirit with universal cinematic codes. Beyond his professional life, Cedar remains closely connected to the cultural and religious traditions of his upbringing.