It is no dream
Story
Traveling through Israel filmmakers Benny Brunner and Joseph Rochlitz went looking for prominent Israeli’s who are critical of Israel’s occupation policies. Meir Shalev – one of Israel’s best-known writers, Gideon Levy – columnist for Haaretz newspaper, Jessica Montell – Director of B’Tselem (Israeli Human Rights Center), Yehudit Katzir writer, Yizhar Be’er, Director of the Israeli Center for Democracy, Adi Ophir, Professor of Philosophy at Tel Aviv University, Noa Levy, leader of the High School students “refusal-to-serve” movement and Yitzhak La’or – writer and poet.
Social Interest
Not every Israeli is in support Israel’s occupation policies. In addition to in-depth interviews with Israel’s leading critics, the filmmakers also attended a major peace rally in Tel Aviv, and recorded the fiery words of Yishai Rosen-Tzvi, one of the first to sign the Letter of refusal-to-serve in the Occupied Territories. Readily admitting that their point of view is a minority one and that most of the Israeli public is behind the army and government, they illustrate one Israeli perspective on the causes of and solutions to the continuing bloodshed which is seldom covered by the international media.
Historic Interest
“If you will it, it is no dream” wrote the founder of political Zionism Theodor Herzl in 1902, prophesizing the creation of a utopian Jewish state. One hundred years later, some of the harshest critics of Israel’s occupation policies are Israelis themselves, a small minority of intellectuals, political activists and artists whose voices are rarely heard outside Israel. Shortly before the escalation of the Israeli-Palestinian War in March 2002, filmmakers Benny Brunner and Joseph Rochlitz traveled through the country and spoke to a number of them.
About the Producer
Benny Brunner is an Israeli-Dutch filmmaker based in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Jewish and Israeli modern history, and inspiring individuals are the subject matters of his films. Brunner has written, directed, and produced documentary films internationally since mid-1980s. He does not believe in “objectivity” in documentary filmmaking, especially in times of conflict, when people are killed in the name of ideology. His political stand in the century old struggle between Arabs and Jews in Palestine-Israel is clearly reflected in his films.
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