Yoav Shamir was born in Tel Aviv in 1970. A ninth-generation Israeli from Tel Aviv, he is the son of two elementary school teachers. He graduated from Tel Aviv University with a BA in History and philosophy. He obtained a MFA in cinema with honours.[1] He served as an Israeli soldier in the Israeli-occupied territories.[2]
Shamir's documentaries made him a focal point of criticism and garnered accusations of antisemitism.[4][5] After the success of Checkpoint, Shamir was referred to as the "Israeli Mel Gibson" by American journalists and accused of antisemitism, fact that he described as a "total nonsense and a very offensive term for me". This inspired him to do a project about contemporary antisemitism, the film Defamation.[2]
His latest film, 10%: What Makes a Hero?, is focused on the premise that a small minority of people, less than 10%, will always fight for what is just regardless of circumstance.[6]
