Sitting on the outskirts of Jerusalem, Deir Yassin became the site of one of the most pivotal clashes in the 1948 War of Independence. It also remains one of the most controversial, considered by many a blemish on Israel’s storied history. Three years after Jewish fighters conquered this Palestinian Arab village, killing over 100 and forcing out the remainder of the local population, the nascent Israeli government established the Kfar Shaul Mental Health Center on the site, which remains to this day. Dror Nissan, taken at birth from his mother—who was hospitalized at the facility for the final years of her life—returns to this hospital as he attempts to learn more about his own past. By both tracing Nissan’s personal journey as well as documenting the contradicting memories of  several Israelis who fought that day, Shoshani unveils secrets of the nation’s founding fathers who set in motion the Palestinian refugee crisis that persists 70 years later.

Screening followed by Q&A with producer, Rotem Faran, editor, Assaf Lapid, moderated by Rabbi Amichai Lau-Lavie of Lab/Shul. 

Co-presented by Lab/Shul. 

Gush Etzion Junction, a commercial intersection frequented by both Palestinians and Israeli settlers, lies midway between Jerusalem and Hebron and is the entrance to one of the largest settlement blocks in the West Bank. In 2014, Ali Abu Awwad built a shack on a plot of land owned by his family near the junction to create a Palestinian Center for Nonviolence. He invited some settlers to visit, sit, and talk. They would discuss both the serious and mundane elements of their lives and begin a process of transformation that could lead to mutual recognition and understanding that they must coexist as neighbors with dignity and justice for all. Awwad had been a fighter and militant activist, enraged by his brother’s death at the hands of an Israeli soldier and having served time in an Israeli prison. But now, partnering with the settlers, he and his family created “Roots,” a grassroots effort to advance responsibility and reconciliation through peaceful conversation, activities, and cooperation in addressing the fears and needs of both communities. Director Vardi, an Orthodox Jewish rabbi and resident of Gush Etzion, provides a glimpse of the dialogue between Palestinians and Israeli settlers, and follows the group throughout a wave of violence in 2015 that challenges all of their hopes for reconciliation.

Screening followed by Q&A with Mordechai Vardi and protagonist, Rabbi Hanan Schlesinger, and photographer, Saskia Keeley. 

Following the screening, please join our Breakout Sessions in the lobby of the JCC for facilitated in-depth group discussions. For more information, click here.

Co-presented by Alliance for Middle East Peace, Encounter, Hand in Hand, and J Street. 

Two Palestinian women share an apartment in the vibrant heart of Tel Aviv. A stylish criminal lawyer with a wicked wit, Laila sheds her professional persona and releases any inhibitions in the city’s underground club scene. Her more subdued lesbian roommate Salma left her conservative Christian home and floats from job-to-job, working primarily as a bartender and DJ. They are joined by Nur, a religious Muslim, who moves into the apartment while studying at the local university. Her fiancé refuses to understand why she prefers to study and work over establishing their home. Together, the roommates  search for ways to live in the space in between their desired modern lifestyles and the pressures from their traditional communities.

Screening followed by Q&A with Maysaloun Hamoud and MK Merav Michaeli. 

Co-presented by Inter-Agency Task Force on Israeli Arab Issues and A Wider Bridge.

As an infant, Palestinian Muhi was rushed from his home in Gaza to an Israeli hospital. Travel restrictions allowed only Muhi’s grandfather to accompany him to Israel, and seven years later, Muhi has grown into a brave and spirited boy. Unable to receive the care he still needs in Gaza, he and his grandfather remain in the hospital, spending their days roaming the wards, separated from their family and most of the outside world. With the help of an Israeli who lost his own son due to war, the grandfather steadily fights to create a future for Muhi outside of the hospital, whether in Israel or Gaza. Caught between two worlds, Muhi grows up speaking Arabic and Hebrew, studying the Torah and Koran, and cared for by the very government that keeps him separated from his mother and the rest of his family. This paradoxical circumstance transcends identity, nationality, religion, and the larger conflict that both surrounds him and divides his world.

Q&A to follow with producer Hilla Medalia from Israel moderated by Ruth Messinger, Social Justice Activist in Residence at the new Joseph Stern Center for Social Responsibility at the JCC. 

Co-presented by the New Israel Fund, American Friends of Sheba Medical Center, and Park Slope Jewish Center. 

American reality TV producer Jen Heck brings her friends from a self-described bubble in Tel Aviv, where many are ignorant of the realities of life for Palestinians, to meet Lina, a Palestinian living in Nablus. This action could land them all in a great deal of trouble, as the Palestinian city is off limits to Israeli citizens. When Shlomit and Lina hit it off, they decide to form a band which would allow them to continue to meet and interact. None have much musical ability, but Shlomit recruits a few more friends, and they begin making regular trips to Lina’s home in Nablus. The more time the women spend together, the more they connect with each other and begin to realize they’re not so different.

Screening followed by Q&A with Jen Heck, Ben Frazer (editor), Viki Auslander (protagonist), and Obada Shtaya, regional director at OneVoice Movement. 

Co-presented by OneVoice Movement and The Selma and Lawrence Ruben Center for 20s + 30s.

This hit Israeli TV series follows Micah Alkobi, who maintains a reputation as a fair and honorable judge throughout the southern Israeli city of Be’er Sheva, even among the Bedouin population who believe they might get a fair shake in his courtroom. However,  just as he’s on the verge of winning an election for a seat on a higher court, a personal crisis tests those renowned qualities and threatens to cost him everything. Micah’s son Shai hits a motorcyclist with his car and flees the scene. Micah demands Shai turn himself in, until he learns that the critically injured biker is the son of the local Israeli crime boss, currently serving time in prison and no fan of the judge. Desperate to protect his son, and knowing that his identity would likely get him killed, he enlists the help of friends—a Bedouin police officer and his wife—to help cover up the incident. This decision marks just the first of a string of choices Micah makes leading him further into criminal territory and away from the prominent position he has worked so hard to earn.

Screening followed by Q&A with creator, Shlomo Mashiach, and Rasool Saada, Director of Safe Communities at The Abraham Fund. 

Co-presented by The Abraham Fund Initiatives.