(JNS.org) Oscar-winning actress Helen Mirren, who is visiting Israel to host this year’s Genesis Prize ceremony, called herself a “believer” in Israel and rejected artistic boycotts of the Jewish state during a press conference in Jerusalem. “I think that art is an incredibly important way of communication. The artists of the country are the people you need to communicate with and make a relationship with and learn from and build upon. So I absolutely don’t believe in the boycott, and here I am,” she said. The ceremony for the Genesis Prize, also known as the “Jewish Nobel,” took place Thursday, June 23. The $1 million prize was awarded to Israeli-American violinist Itzhak Perlman. Previous winners are actor Michael Douglas and former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg. Both those ceremonies were hosted by comedian Jay Leno. The 70-year-old Mirren is not Jewish. She has visited Israel several times. In 1967, she volunteered on a kibbutz with her Jewish boyfriend at the time. “I am a believer in Israel….I think this is an extraordinary country filled with very, very extraordinary people,” she said.