ADA: My Mother the Architect

ADA: My Mother the Architect is a deeply personal documentary directed by filmmaker Yael Melamede about her mother, Ada Karmi Melamede, one of the most accomplished architects in the world.

Despite shaping some of Israel’s most important civic institutions, Ada’s work remains largely unknown outside her home country. This film offers an intimate look at her life, her legacy, and the complex choices she faced balancing career, country, and motherhood.

Through conversations, archival footage, and reflections on design, the film explores architecture not just as a profession, but as a public good that reflects the values of a society.

“Without common ground we have no language.”
— Ada Karmi Melamede

Despite personal sacrifices, Ada’s work gave physical form to some of Israel’s highest democratic ideals, most notably in the acclaimed Supreme Court building in Jerusalem, the Open University, Ben Gurion University, the Institute for Democracy and numerous other civic institutions around the country.

“As a filmmaker and former architect, I wanted to reimagine the heroic image of architecture and architects often portrayed in books and movies and find a way to make this essential practice more relevant and relatable,” said the filmmaker Yael Melamede in their Director’s Statement. “I found that opportunity close to home with the story of Ada Melamede, my mother.”