Former President Moshe Katsav was sentenced to seven years in prison only Thursday, but already one of Israel's largest production companies is gearing up to make a movie about him. July-August Productions, responsible for well-known Israeli films such as "The Band's Visit" and "Shiva" and the television drama series "Yellow Peppers," has already started work on the movie. The story will follow Katsav's meteoric rise from young mayor to senior government minister, to president of the state of Israel, followed by his downfall and conviction as a rapist. Ronit Weiss-Berkowitz is penning the screenplay on the basis of an idea developed by Lisa Shiloach-Uzrad, the company's owner. The film will explore the various high-drama issues that came to light as Katsav's scandal unfolded: the suspicions, the entanglements, the political and social fights, and how the families involved coped under pressure. The media, lawyers, the government prosecutor, friends, family and victims will all be featured in the screenplay. Attorney Kinneret Barashi, who represented "A," the woman who set off the trial by accusing Katsav of rape, served as a consultant to the screenplay. July-August Productions says the film will be based on real events but some of its story lines will be dramatically enhanced. Some liberties will be taken in fleshing out the sexual harassment and the enormous power differential between Katsav's elite lawyers and the inexperienced attorney fighting to represent "A" when no one believed her. In a statement, the company said its foremost goal was to produce a good feature film. Casting for the film is set to begin soon.
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