Cinema Sabaya, directed by Orit Fouks Rotem, won the Ophir Prize (the top Israeli prize for best film of the year) this past week. That means that it will be Israel’s entry to the Oscars for Best Foreign Film. The film is an intimate and sometimes hard-hitting look at the encounters between four Jewish women and four Palestinian women, meeting for the first time in a video workshop in the city of Hadera. Rona, a young Tel Aviv filmmaker (played by Dana Ivgi), is the workshop facilitator.
The film takes place in a community center room, where the group of women meet for the video workshop. Although all of the action takes place in this one venue, and it might seem a bit claustrophobic, many of the scenes are shot by the women themselves, in their own homes.
Rona distributes video cameras, has everyone introduce
themselves on camera, and slowly, but surely, the participants get to know one
another and their stereotypes about each other begin to change. Assigned to document their own homes and
their own lives, the participants bring into the class raw footage which
provides us with an intimate look at the women – their hopes and dreams, and at
the same time, their frustrations and issues at home with their husbands and
children and pets.
The women represent a microcosm of Israeli life. Of the four Palestinian women – two wear
hijabs (one is retired and one is younger), one is a secular human rights lawyer
and the youngest, still lives with her parents.
Of the four Jewish women – one is sort of an older hippie, living on a
boat, another is a Russian immigrant, another is twice divorced, and the fourth
talks about her husband’s terrible depression.
Multiple issues arise between members of the group and there
are some intense moments. For example, one Jewish woman admits to never having
really met any Arab women before. She is
accused of not looking, not caring, not seeing.
In response, she accuses the human rights lawyer of defending
terrorists. As the group becomes more
cohesive, however, the women begin to share intimate details about their lives,
as seen on the video clips that they bring to class, and in the small
role-playing scenes that take place. The
younger woman who wears a hijab admits to wanting to obtain a drivers’ license,
even though her husband is opposed. When
the Jewish women in the group encourage her to go after it anyway, the older
woman with a hijab, tells her (in Arabic) not to listen to them. It is clear
that she better understands the dynamic within the Palestinian family, where
the man rules the household.
According to the filmmaker, Orit Fouks Rotem, this is a film about
women and women’s stories: “I think that the film
offers a rare glimpse to the hidden depths of the lives of Jewish and
Palestinian women, where their central point of convergence, the most profound
thing they had in common, is simply being a woman. This turned to be stronger
than their religion or cultural world. I hope the film will offer an intimate
and empowering conversation, not ignoring the different backgrounds, but rather
proving that this does not provide an obstacle in creating deep connections and
true friendships. Women who want their stories to be heard, but are scared, or
are unable, to tell them in the first person. Therefore, this is a film that also
deals with the power of cinema.”
Cinema Sabaya is a film filled with
surprisingly intimate and tense moments.
The team of nine women are all played by strong actresses. Moreover, the film goes beyond stereotypes,
providing the viewer with a glimpse into the complex lives of those
participating in the video workshop.
The film is also a statement about the possibilities of
Arab-Jewish coexistence in Israel. Through genuine dialogue—which was
engendered by the making of very personal films in which each woman shared her
dreams—it becomes apparent that Jews and Arabs can actually learn to live
together in Israeli society, contrary to the conventional wisdom which fosters
only perpetual suspicion and conflict.
Cinema Sabaya is available from Memento International.
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