We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Rotem Alima a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Rotem, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

While many people say that they love risks and getting out of their comfort zone, I have my life as proof. Opening my production company in LA was probably the most significant risk I took. It was 2020, years of Covid 19, and for many, it felt like the world was coming to an end. Hollywood was literally a ghost town, and no one knew what the future held.

At the time, I was begging people to give me a chance, but no one was willing to place their bet on me.
So, I decided to bet on myself – and started my own production company. People around me were shocked. If you can’t get a job, how do you expect to be successful in getting projects?

But that was precisely what I did. And today, I’m not looking for a job, I am a job creator. And I give chances to gifted, talented people – people that other people are afraid to bet on. Risky? Well, maybe, but I wouldn’t have any other way.

Rotem, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Some people don’t believe it when I tell them that since I was 12 years old, I talked about wanting to be a producer. Obviously, I wasn’t sure what it meant nor what I needed to do to become one, but the voices in my head said it was what I should do.
Growing up in a small town in the countryside of Israel certainly didn’t help.
For most people around me, I was just the weird kid with those big dreams and crazy ideas that didn’t make sense.

Well, that began to change when I produced my first movie at the age of 16 – and it was accepted to a film festival, no less. From that moment on, I felt in my bones that for me becoming a successful producer that influences people all around the world and creates uses it to create a better world is going to be my life’s mission.

In my early 20’s, I started attending `The Steve Tisch School of Film and TV at Tel Aviv University. While in the first year, I had a rusty start, in the second year, I thrived and flourished.
I was among the top 5 student directors at the Perlove Film Competition. My graduate film from the school, ‘Paris on the Water’ won the Students’ Oscar (!), and I won an Israeli Academy award.
I vividly remember that day, feeling that “this small-town girl is going places”. Not long after, I was chosen to be featured on the Forbes 30 under 30 lists of talented people in Israel (the same year as Gal Gadot).

Moving to LA wasn’t the easiest of journeys, to say the least, but I’m grateful for every bump in the road, every challenge, and every heartbreak. All this struggle led me to establish an independent production company from the ground up with leading US and Israeli clients. And instead of asking people for a job – I’m creating new jobs.

I have a fantastic team; we are developing impact-driven documentaries, tv shows, and scripted films. We’ve produced dozens of marketing campaigns and amplified the voices of large international brands. Honestly, I couldn’t have done this without my team.

Being a producer in Hollywood is not just my job title; it’s my mission and calling in life. When some people tell me that I’m overstating things, I remind them that I’ve left a successful career in Israel to build myself from scratch in Los Angeles.
For most people, it was too much of a risk, but there was no other option for me: I followed my heart. I was being who I am.
And like in the movies, the gutsy move paid off.

I think that people who get to fulfill their life’s mission, as hard as it may be, should feel blessed. And so, I wake up every morning grateful for my life.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

For me, Hollywood is not “just entertainment”. I don’t accept the cynical perspective of some people, who see us as a place that makes “fun content”, and nothing more. I believe that this industry is also about broadcasting important messages. Think of the former Soviet Union: what made it collapse – ballistic missiles or movies? Tanks or ideas? Guns or values?
I would argue that the American values transmitted in music and movies won the heart and minds of many former Soviet nationals that didn’t know these ideas and values existed.

And even today, American ideals of freedom, a free economy, and women’s equality have captured the imaginations of numerous young Iranian women – and they are fighting for their rights under this oppressive, evil regime.
Victor Hugo once said, ” One can resist the invasion of an army, but one cannot resist an idea whose time has come”.
We’re very fortunate to be in a position to create irresistible ideas and, hopefully, help make the world a little better. If that’s not emotionally rewarding, I don’t know what is.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

I aim to create something meaningful for others in everything I do. In every aspect of my work – I make sure that it’s about “we, not about me”. It’s about the audience and its impact on their lives.
There’s so much struggle and suffering in the world nowadays, and I think that our role – my role – is to try to find ways to make an impact on my community and on the world.

Everything from attention to environmental issues, volunteering in my community, and creating meaningful, impactful movies – that inspire people and give them hope.
There is a prayer I love that we say when we do community and charity work that says, “May we always be on the giving side”.

Amen to that.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.rotemalima.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/rotem.alima
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rotem.alima?mibextid=LQQJ4d
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rotem-alima

Image Credits
for the 2 picture with the white dress and the picture with the dog, and the picture with the black suit please give credit to : Noy Dekel