Ido Weisman

Ido Weisman
Born1989 (age 36–37)
EducationTel Aviv University (BFA)
Occupations
  • Film director
  • Cinematographer
Years active2018–present
Known forRequiem for a Whale (2022)
Sun Bay (2025)
AwardsDavid L. Wolper Student Documentary Award (2022)
Websitewww.idoweisman.com

Ido Weisman (born 1989) is an Israeli film director and cinematographer known for his documentary films Requiem for a Whale (2022) and Sun Bay (2025). His work has received awards at the International Documentary Association (IDA) Documentary Awards, the Docaviv International Documentary Film Festival and the Flickers' Rhode Island International Film Festival.

Early life and education

Weisman was born in 1989 and grew up in Nofit, a village in northern Israel. He earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the Steve Tisch School of Film and Television at Tel Aviv University.

Career

Early films

Weisman began his filmmaking career with several short films, including the documentaries Horah (2018) and Uzzi (2018), and the narrative short Pool (2019). Uzzi was shortlisted for the BAFTA Student Film Awards.

Requiem for a Whale

In 2022, Weisman directed and photographed the short documentary Requiem for a Whale, which examines the responses of people who encountered the carcass of a whale that washed ashore at Nitzanim beach in Israel in 2021.

The film won the David L. Wolper Student Documentary Award at the 2022 IDA Documentary Awards, with Weisman credited as its director and producer. It also received the Best Student Film award at the Israeli Documentary Forum Awards and won second place and the cinematography award in the student competition at the 2022 Docaviv International Documentary Film Festival.

In 2023, Requiem for a Whale was nominated for the Ophir Award for Best Documentary Short Film. The film was subsequently distributed through The New Yorker, which published the documentary in August 2023 alongside an article discussing its themes and production.

Sun Bay

Weisman's feature-length documentary debut, Sun Bay (2025), follows three residents of a trailer park in Eilat, Israel. The film explores loneliness, social marginalisation and the residents' relationships with their past lives.

The film won the First Feature Award at the 2025 Docaviv International Documentary Film Festival and at the 2025 Israeli Documentary Forum Awards.

In August 2026, Sun Bay received the Grand Prize for Best Documentary Feature at the Flickers' Rhode Island International Film Festival in the United States.

The following month, Weisman received the Best Director Award for the film at the Moscow International Documentary Film Festival DOKer.

Sun Bay was also among the five finalists for Best Documentary Feature at the 2026 Ophir Awards. It was broadcast on Kan 11 in early 2026.

Television and other recognition

In 2025, Weisman directed the Israeli television programme You Have to Read This!, which aired on Kan 11.

In 2026, he was included in Docaviv's "20 Under 40" selection, recognising emerging figures in Israeli documentary filmmaking.

Filmography

Year Title Type Role
2018 Horah Documentary short Director, cinematographer
2018 Uzzi Documentary short Director, cinematographer
2019 Pool Narrative short Director
2022 Requiem for a Whale Documentary short Director, producer, cinematographer
2025 Sun Bay Documentary feature Director, cinematographer

Television

Year Title Broadcaster Role
2025 You Have to Read This! Kan 11 Director

Awards and nominations

Year Award or festival Category Work Result
2022 Docaviv International Documentary Film Festival Student Competition – Second Prize Requiem for a Whale Won
2022 Docaviv International Documentary Film Festival Student Competition – Cinematography Award Requiem for a Whale Won
2022 Israeli Documentary Forum Awards Best Student Film Requiem for a Whale Won
2022 IDA Documentary Awards David L. Wolper Student Documentary Award Requiem for a Whale Won
2023 Ophir Awards Best Documentary Short Film Requiem for a Whale Nominated
2025 Docaviv International Documentary Film Festival First Feature Award Sun Bay Won
2025 Israeli Documentary Forum Awards First Feature Award Sun Bay Won
2026 Flickers' Rhode Island International Film Festival Grand Prize for Best Documentary Feature Sun Bay Won
2026 Moscow International Documentary Film Festival DOKer Best Director Sun Bay Won
2026 Ophir Awards Best Documentary Feature Sun Bay Nominated


Personal life

Weisman was in a relationship with Israeli actress Shira Haas for more than four years. Their separation was reported in January 2025.

Weisman resides in Tel Aviv, Israel.


References

  1. 1 2 "2022 IDA Documentary Awards Nominees & Winners". International Documentary Association. Retrieved 13 October 2026.
  2. 1 2 "Awards". Flickers' Rhode Island International Film Festival. Retrieved 13 October 2026.
  3. 1 2 "Requiem for a Whale". Docaviv International Documentary Film Festival. Retrieved 13 October 2026.
  4. 1 2 "About". Ido Weisman. Retrieved 13 October 2026.
  5. 1 2 "A Deathly Rorschach Test in 'Requiem for a Whale'". The New Yorker. 29 August 2023. Retrieved 13 October 2026.
  6. ↑ ""Requiem for a Whale" Won Best Student Film Award at the IDA Documentary Awards Ceremony". Tel Aviv University. 25 December 2022. Retrieved 13 October 2026.
  7. ↑ "What a Mammal's Loss Teaches Us About Mortality: Requiem for a Whale". The New Yorker. 29 August 2023. Retrieved 13 October 2026.
  8. 1 2 3 "Sun Bay". Ido Weisman. Retrieved 13 October 2026.
  9. ↑ "International achievement for Israeli cinema: Directing award for Sun Bay in Moscow". Maariv (in Hebrew). 15 September 2026. Retrieved 13 October 2026.
  10. ↑ "20 Under 40". Docaviv International Documentary Film Festival. Retrieved 13 October 2026.
  11. ↑ Markovitz, Lilach (19 January 2025). "אחרי 4 שנות זוגיות: שירה האס ובן זוגה נפרדו" [After four years together: Shira Haas and her partner separate]. mako (in Hebrew). Retrieved 14 October 2026.