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Amanda Bernstein | The Smart Family Institute

Amanda Bernstein

Amanda Bernstein
Amanda
Bernstein
Research Topic: Israeli immigration and absorption cinema
Advisor: Prof. Raya Morag

Amanda Bernstein is a ‎Stage B PhD student. ‎Having completed her ‎Bachelor’s degree in ‎Communications & ‎Journalism and Jewish ‎Thought; and a ‎Master’s in ‎Communications, ‎Culture, and Cinema, all ‎at the Hebrew ‎University of Jerusalem; ‎Amanda is a passionate ‎researcher of Jewish life ‎and Israeli culture; ‎particularly as ‎manifested in its ‎cinema. Currently, ‎Amanda is writing her ‎doctoral dissertation, ‎examining the narrative ‎cinematic depictions of ‎aliyah – Jewish ‎immigration – and ‎absorption in Israeli ‎cinema, and sketching a ‎history of the trends ‎and tropes that have ‎been common to the ‎cinematic portrayals of ‎Jewish immigrants and ‎their offspring ‎acclimating to life in ‎Israel, from 1948 ‎through 2020‎‏.  ‏

In February 2021, ‎Amanda had an abstract ‎accepted for the ‎‎“Pluralistic Israel: ‎Women, Minorities and ‎Diversity” Association ‎for Israel Studies ‎conference. ‎Presentation title: ‎‎“Lacking a Birthplace? ‎Israeli Cinema`s Missing ‎Voices of Life Before ‎Immigration”. The ‎conference and ‎presentation are ‎scheduled to take place ‎in June‏. ‏

Additionally, in ‎February 2020, Amanda ‎had an abstract ‎accepted for the ‎‎“American Jewry and ‎Israel: Intersections and ‎Connections between ‎Homelands and ‎Diasporas” Association ‎for Israel Studies ‎conference. ‎Presentation title: “Life ‎before Aliyah: Israeli ‎cinema’s exploration of ‎the Jewish diaspora”. ‎This conference was ‎cancelled due to the ‎covid-19 pandemic‎‏. ‏

In May 2018 Amanda ‎presented a paper ‎based on her Master’s ‎thesis at the "Gender ‎across borders" ‎interdisciplinary ‎conference for research ‎students, Department ‎of women's and gender ‎studies, Tel Aviv ‎University. Presentation ‎title: "Double ‎oppression of the Arab ‎woman in Intifada II ‎Israeli and Palestinian ‎cinema‏".‏

She works as a research ‎assistant for Professor ‎Raya Morag‏.‏

 

Research Interests

  • Israeli cinema

  • Film studies

  • Jewish studies

  • Migration studies

  • Gender studies

  • Israeli culture

  • Israeli history

 

Awards and Prizes

  • Department of Communications Scholarship 2021

  • Department of Communications Schaolarship 2020

  • Smart Institute Scholarship 2019

  • Dean’s List 2017

  • Dean’s List 2016

  • Scholarship for Academic Excellence 2016

  • Dean’s List 2013