For twenty years, the Other Israel Film Festival has impacted our community and changed perceptions through enthralling films that explore some of the most crucial topics relating to Israel. Going beyond the headlines, the festival has also spotlighted issues that are often overlooked, giving us a deeper understanding of the communities that make up Israeli society.
Through masterful storytelling and award-winning films, we brought hundreds of premieres to our community, permanently changing the way many people perceive Israel. Going beyond the politics, we showed human stories and highlighted voices that bring nuance to Israeli society. From The Syrian Bride by Eran Ricklis, a story of a Druze woman in Israel giving up her family to marry a man on the Other Side of the border, to Rabbi Capoera by Barak Heymann, following an Orthodox man bringing a unique form of exercise to his community. These films found new lives in the U.S. thanks to the festival, and we opened doors for many other presentations. We watched as more and more spaces across the country began presenting films that had once been shown almost exclusively by us.
The festival began with a simple vision, led by Carole Zabar. She wanted to show the complexity of life in Israel, with a particular focus on the Arab minority. In last week’s Israeli elections, the role of Arab citizens in Israel’s future was made clear, as Arab-led parties won a historic 19 seats. From the beginning, Other Israel brought stories of everyday Arab life in Israel to the New York community. Until then, this population had rarely been seen outside the context of the conflict. The festival offered a different perspective, sharing the day-to-day stories of Israel’s 20% Arab population, beyond the headlines and the politics.
Over the years, the festival’s focus expanded to include other underrepresented minority groups and to tell more diverse and timely stories from Israel. From Ethiopian Israelis to Mizrahi Jews, and from communities rarely seen on screen, like the Samaritans, to stories that simply humanized the unfamiliar, Other Israel became a movement for new voices and a recognition of Israel’s diversity.
But what truly made Other Israel unique were the conversations. We made sure that every film was not simply followed by a Q&A, but by tailored, in-depth back-and-forth with the audience, placing the film’s messages within a broader context. Sometimes, we would follow up with a second conversation or a standalone panel, taking the themes of a film even further and highlighting the work our partners are doing on the ground. We partnered with leading organizations directly involved in the issues explored in the films, bringing them into the conversation as a call to action and another way to deepen engagement.
It was rare to find a JCC in America presenting both Jewish and Palestinian perspectives, and often creating a dialogue between them. The Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan was proud to create a space where hopeful encounters could take place between people on different sides of the conflict. We also took the films beyond the JCC into more neutral spaces and mainstream movie theaters, making sure that those who might not feel comfortable coming to the JCC could also experience these films and conversations. Palestinians and Jews would sit side by side and find understanding.
Of course, not everyone welcomed what we were doing. We received hate mail and complaints, and sometimes heard directly from audience members who disagreed with our programming. We simultaneously faced pushback from both the BDS movement and parts of the right-wing Jewish community. But as filmmakers and community members kept returning and applauding our work, we knew we were doing something right! The truth is that much of the pushback came from the fringes. It could be loud, but it did not represent the broader community who valued these encounters.
During the pandemic, when we moved the festival online, we opened it up to a national audience and saw our strongest numbers. As our brand grew stronger, we received greater recognition and more requests to bring our programming to communities around the country and around the world. Even in Israel, members of the film industry expressed a need for a festival like ours. The constant comment from our visiting filmmakers was that there is no space like this in Israel, and they need to come to New York to create this engagement. Last year, the Berlin Jewish Film Festival introduced an Other Israel section in its program, partnering with our brand and mission to the delight of its community.
Since October 7th, these conversations have become more challenging. The community has grown more polarized, and the space for dialogue has become increasingly limited. After three years of programming in the face of these challenges, it was time to take a step back and consider where we needed to go next.
After twenty years, and amid dramatic changes in our society, we decided it was time to break down some of the barriers that had limited the festival and reinvent it, opening new doors to the entire community. We are proud to launch the New Perspectives Film Festival.
This festival will take a much-needed, deeper look at Israeli society and the communities it touches. Like Other Israel, it will look beyond the headlines, bringing fresh perspectives and illuminating voices that deserve to be heard, bringing further nuance and engagement for our community.
