Talya Lavie is a writer, director, and film teacher. A graduate of the Sam Spiegel Film and Television School, in 2003 Lavie directed the critically-acclaimed short Oat in Coffee (‘shibolet bakafe’) which soon became an international festival darling and was even featured at New York City’s Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). Highlights of the film’s many awards include Special Mentions at both Haifa and Karlovy Vari International Film Festivals. In 2005, inspired by her military service in the IDF, Lavie made her graduation film. The Substitute (‘hayelet bodeda’), that was shown at the Jerusalem Film Festival and at dozens of international festivals, taking home multiple awards including a Panorama Audience Award for Best Short Film at the Berlin International Film Festival, and a Special Mention at the Karlovy Vari International Film Festival.
In 2014, Lavie directed her feature film debut, Zero Motivation, which was also based on her time in the IDF. The film was a massive box office hit and was watched by over 600,000 people in cinemas. At the Tribeca Festival, the film took home the awards for Best Film and Best Director, whereas in Israel it won a total of six Ophir Awards, including Best Director. In 2019, Tel Aviv’s renowned Beit Lessin Theatre premiered a stage musical adaptation inspired by the plot of the film.
In 2020, Lavie directed the film Honeymood, and in 2021 along with Shir Reuven, she co-created the television series, Sad City Girls, that aired on Israeli cabler HOT.