By Dan Friedman November 12, 2009

If Lawrence Wright’s piece about Gaza in the New Yorker has got you down as it has Marissa Brostoff, then Aaron David Miller’s piece about the stalled peace process is going to give you more food for thought.

But don’t despair about dialogue and meaningful human interactions between different sides of the middle east crisis, The Other Israel Film Festival opens tomorrow opening doors that most of us didn’t even know existed. On Friday night, young Jewish filmmaker Barak Heymann and veteran star Mohammad Bakri will be literally walking through one of those doors to break bread with one another.

The festival kicks off with Jaffa which our own Jordana Horn reviewed last week and features both a film about Palestinian rapper Saz (a contributor to Soulico’s new album ) and the man himself rapping on Sunday night at the JCC in Manhattan.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

At 18 all Jewish Israelis are required to begin their army service, but what about the non-Jews and non-Druze? Natan Dvir’s haunting photographic series 18 records those who the Jewish state has decided it cannot call upon for its defense. Put on your magen david keffiyeh and open some doors for peace.

Watch SAZ ripping some rhymes below.

A message from our Publisher & CEO Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

With your support, we’ll be ready for whatever 2025 brings.

$36 $500

$120 $180 Other amount