Films educate students on Israeli lifestyles

By: Amanda Munsie

Posted: 11/11/07

Recent Israeli movies screened on campus illustrate a growing trend of using film to influence and educate students by displaying a way of life from which they are removed.
Around 20 people attended the film "Encounter Point" on Oct. 17, the story of an Israeli settler, Palestinian ex-prisoner, grieving Israeli mother, and wounded Palestinian bereaved brother and their struggle to call for a movement of nonviolence and peace.

The Pro-Israel Terripan Alliance, a bipartisan group dedicated to strengthening the relationship of the United States and Israel, screened the film, which was followed by a discussion, with help from the Union of Progressive Zionists, in an effort to bring a more balanced movie to campus.

Danielle Jaffee, vice president of PITA, said they brought the movie to campus to lead up to the OneVoice Rally scheduled to take place across the world on Oct. 18. that was canceled because of security threats.

"I think a lot of the people that came to the movie came with an open mind and wanted to learn something," said Jaffee, a junior international business and marketing double major. "Everyone saw one thing they were surprised about."

Jaffee said growing up many students do not receive a well-balanced education of the conflict in Israel and she felt the movie successfully conveyed this perspective to students.

"Even if it didn't convince them, it opened their eyes," she said.

PITA plans to screen the movie again next semester, in an effort to gain a larger turnout, Jaffee said.

On Oct. 21, around 40 people attended a screening of the film "Mechina: A Preparation," which follows the stories of six Israeli teens as they prepare to enter the Israeli Defense Forces. It reveals a side of the army virtually unseen before and depicts the lives of the people in uniforms, uncovering the shift from students to soldiers.

The Jewish Student Union, along with the help of Hillel and MASA, an organization that brings young Jewish adults to spend a semester or year in Israel, hosted the event.
Eric Merin, co-chair for Israel programming for JSU, helped bring this film to campus with the encouragement of the Hillel directors.

"It was important to be able to show people the human side of the Israel army," said Merin, a sophomore government and politics and communication major.

The movie depicted the Israeli soldiers in a light that made them relatable, especially to students here who are of the same age as those entering the army.

After the film, there was a question and answer session with director Maital Guttman.

"We asked her what the most surprising thing she learned was," Merin said. "She told us that instead of worrying about the actual fighting in the army, the kids were worried about making friends, almost as if they were going to college just like us."

Another film, "Dear Mr. Waldman," was screened at the Hoff Theatre Nov. 1 as part of an Israeli film series on the topic of "Immigrant Dreams/Israeli Realities: Films on Conflicted Identities." The film is an autobiographical work of Israeli writer-director Hanan Peled and portrays one family's struggle in the 1960s to start a new life in Israel and overcome their grief and loss from the Holocaust.

Currently, the Landmark Bethesda Row Cinema in Bethesda, Md., is playing the popular Israeli movie The Bubble, which was released in Israel in 2006 under the name Ha Buah.

This film portrays a group of young friends in a trendy neighborhood in Tel Aviv, depicts the difficulties of being a teenager in modern-day Israel and displays how befriending a Palestinian can be life altering in more ways than one.