Bermudian sisters Karli and Kara Smith have teamed up with an Israeli director for an upcoming web series set in Jerusalem.

After meeting at the Reykjavik International Film Festival in Iceland in October, the film-makers invited Yuval Shapira to the island to work on the script and attend the premiere of Respice Finem, a feature-length documentary the sisters co-directed about the Berkeley Institute.

“It was one of the most fun movie experiences I’ve had,” he told The Royal Gazette of the Saturday screening at the Bermuda International Film Festival.

The American-based filmmaker had never experienced the uniquely interactive way locals participate at the cinema.

Since reuniting, the threesome have been working “non-stop” on the project, a ten-episode series, putting together a “show bible” to seek funding before pre-production begins. They are considering an official co-production between Britain and Israel and aim to begin filming at the end of this year.

Described as a family drama that looks at the Arab-Christian community in Israel, a minority group, it centres around the family of a man who has eloped with a Druze woman — an even more obscure ethnic community in Israel. Tensions subsequently rise because of fundamentalist religious perspectives that send the family into a “tailspin”.

Kara Smith, the younger sister and writer of the group, said the comedy’s five to seven minute episodes require “tight” storytelling. “From a craftsmanship perspective, I’m very excited,” she said, adding that film festivals like BIFF provide an excellent opportunity for like-minded people to meet.

“I think that’s what’s so important about these types of events,” she said.

“They put a lot of time and effort into getting people to mix. Film-making is a collaborative process and making relationships is a huge part of that. In this industry, relationships are what make or break projects. You really need to spend time investing in the relationship — just as much as you would in the work.”

For them, the connection was instant. Kara Smith said that as soon as she saw Yuval she knew she had to work with him.

“We were talking about different processes to film-making and I liked his approach,” she said. Her older sister added: “He has a really strong visual aesthetic and is very thoughtful in the way he approaches film-making in almost a philosophical way and we thought it would be complementary.

“For us, we work as a duo anyway, so we’re open to collaboration, but we need people to be able to stand up and have strong opinions.”

Teaching at BIFF Academy at the end of last year, Karli Smith showed students one of his films, earning a positive response. “They loved it. I think it really helped illustrate to them that there are no limits when creativity is being utilised,” she said.

Mr Shapira said: “We clicked instantly. I remember thinking to myself, I’m going to approach them at breakfast, but then they approached me.”

He said they share a common intent in representing strong mothers on screen.

“It’s not often you get the chance to work on something that’s actually important to you,” he said.

“It’s exciting when you find people you want to work with and that you trust creatively,” Karli Smith added. “For Kara and I it comes easily and to find someone like Yuval was a bonus.”

The sisters said they have found his feedback invaluable as they prepare to take their Bermuda-based documentary to an international audience.