Nili Tal

Nili Tal was born in 1944 in Tel Aviv

Nili Tal was born Nili Herman in Tel Aviv on 15 January 1944, to Israel and Miriam Herman. She studied at the Geula Gymnasium. Her great-grandfather was Sigmund Weinberg, a pioneer of Turkish cinema, and she was a niece of composer Bobby Pinhasi.

After her army service she wrote investigative pieces for Haaretz, starting in 1965. Her reports covered drug addiction, child abuse and battered women. She also wrote as a freelancer for Yedioth Ahronoth and Maariv.

She then joined Israeli television, where she directed documentaries and reports for programs such as Mabat Sheni. Her 1984 film Eyal was the first to show drug injection on Israeli TV. In 1991 she founded her own company, Nili Tal Productions.

Her first independent film, Till Death Do Us Part (1998), covered the murder of Einav Rogel, and a court let her film the trial. Later films included Ukraine Brides, The Girls from Brazil and Sixty and the City. Her films dealt with hardship, social injustice, people on the margins and women.

She received lifetime achievement awards in 2022 and 2023. She was divorced, a mother of 2 sons, and had a long relationship with Yoel Marcus. She died on 7 March 2024 and was buried in Kfar Saba.