Yair Qedar (Hebrew: יאיר קדר, born June 13, 1969) is an Israeli filmmaker and social activist. He's documentary films were shown all over the world, in prominent film festivals and various venues.He is also the initiator of various media projects in Israel, in the fields of the conservation of culture, specifically Hebrew literature and language, and in the GLBT community.
He's latest film "The 5 houses of Lea Goldberg", about the life of Leah Goldberg, the beloved Hebrew poet, is the official selection of Docaviv International Documentary Film Festival 2011, Doc Aviv Galilee 2011 and reached the finals at the Israeli Documentary Film Competition for 2011. The film is supported by the Israeli film service, The New Foundation for Cinema and TV and The Second Authority for Television and Radio. Nowdays Qedar is workind on a second film about as Israeli poet - Yona Wallach.
His film Gay Days,[1] about the GLBT community in Israel, based on his own personal story with the stories of other prominent gay men and women in Israel (Gal Uchovsky, Eytan Fox, Dana International, Offer Nissim, Michal Eden and others), was premiered on May 2009 in Tel Aviv in Docaviv International Documentary Film Festival.,[2][3] and also was screened at the official opening of the Tel Aviv Gay pride events of 2009, was the official selection of the Tel Aviv International LGBT Film Festival, 2009, and the official selection of the Panorama section in the Berlin International Film Festival, 2010. He's film "Mom, Dad, I have something to tell you", starring Israel's known TV host Assi Azar, was shown on Israeli TV at 2.7.2010.
He was founding editor of Pink Time, Israel's first Gay, lesbian and transgender Newspaper,[4] writes in various publications, such as Haaretz, Yedioth Ahronoth, Masa Acher, and is recipient of various journalistic prizes, including winner of the B'nai B'rith World Center Award for Journalism in 2003, and Euromed Heritage Journalistic Award in 2005 and 2006.[5][6][7]
In the 1990s, he was a founders of GLBT studies and Queer theory. He edited the first gay theatre show in Israel in 1994, edited "Beyond Sexuality", an anthology of Gay & Lesbian studies, established 'Pink Time', HaZman Havarod,[8] the community's newspaper, and more. Recently, he found the Rainbow Families organization in Israel, aimed at promoting the rights, understanding and position of GLBT families in the country.