Born in Haifa and trained in Paris and London, Ivry Gitlis (1922 – 2020) embodied the great classical tradition while relentlessly pushing against its boundaries. He performed with nearly every major orchestra in the world and collaborated with artists across genres and generations. Deeply rooted in history yet profoundly modern, he refused conventions in favor of instinct, risk, and absolute artistic freedom. Behind his boundless energy and mischievous joy, however, lies an intimate fracture, linked to a mythical concert that marked the end of his classical career and left him haunted by a troubling question: “For what am I being punished?”
Over a period of five years, while Ivry Gitlis was still alive, the young filmmaker Gaï Tordjman, who got to know him as a neighbor, gained unique access to Ivry’s world and collected more than 120 hours of film footage: intimate conversations, rare archival material, personal voicemail messages, and testimonies from friends, collaborators, and admirers. Alternating between materials from the past and reflections on the present, the complexity of Ivry’s personality unfolds impressively.
For the young filmmaker Gaï, meeting Ivry becomes a decisive turning point. Through this unique friendship and the process of making the film, he grows into the director he aspired to be and fulfills his promise to honor Ivry’s legacy.
Both a portrait of a free-spirited musician and a coming-of-age story, the film explores
universal themes of friendship, transmission, the cost of genius, and the quest for artistic immortality—offering a vibrant cinematic tribute to music, memory, and the art of (not) being a violinist.
A film by Gaï Tordjman
With: Zubin Mehta, Daniel Barenboim, Martha Argerich & Itzhak Perman
A production by Les Films d’Ici & Les Films d‘Ici Méditerranée in co-production with Les Films du plat Pays, Exocet Films, INA, 3B-Produktion, WDR/Arte
Length: 53 + 110 minutes
