Israeli TV show wins best series at inaugural Cannes competition

"When Heroes Fly” is the story of four veterans of a special commando unit from the 2006 Lebanon War who reunite for a final mission.

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(JTA) — An Israeli television series won best series at the first Canneseries festival a new competition aimed at highlighting international television shows.

“When Heroes Fly” is the story of four veterans of a special commando unit from the 2006 Lebanon War who reunite for a final mission — to rescue the girlfriend of one of the commandos who was abducted by a cartel in Colombia.

The show had its world premiere earlier this week at the festival, according to Variety. It has not yet been screened in Israel.

“When Heroes Fly” was created by writer and director Omri Givron, co-creator of the Israeli show “Hostages,” and based on a book by Amir Gutfreund. It stars Tomer Kapon, known for his role in “Fauda,” Ninet Tayeb and Moshe Ashkenazi.

“This show deals with the consequences of war and the prices of it,” Kapon said in his accepting the award at the festival, The Jerusalem Post reported. “So I just want to say, make love and not war.”

A second Israeli series, “Miguel,” which started broadcasting in Israel in January, won the special performance prize. It’s about a gay Israeli man’s attempts to adopt a child and the 5-year-old Guatemalan child that comes into his life.

Ten international series had their debuts at the festival and vied for six awards.

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