State of Suspension (SELECTION)
This is a selection – totalling 33 min. – of the film.
This long documentary initiated by Benny Brunner has 9 chapters and gives a provocative, unusual perspective on Israel/Palestine, looked at through the eyes youngsters and two Israeli comics. With confronting and absurd street theatre, they show the mind-set of the Israeli society after 60 years of independence.
Location: Israel 2008
Themes: Israeli/Palestinian conflict, Confrontation, Nationalism, Vision on the future.
The film examines in nine chapters what has happened to Israelis after 60 years of independence; what went wrong; how have victims turned into to victimizers?
In a series of satirical interactions Israelis, Jews and Arabs alike, are confronted with simple questions-tasks: “Look into the camera and ask forgiveness for the killing of innocent Palestinians/Israelis”. Most people refused. “If a binational state with equal rights to its Arab citizens will be established here and there will be peace with the entire Arab world, who should be the new state’s new enemy” Most people considered this question and the request to pick their favorite war from Israel’s many wars with total seriousness.
The film starts and ends with a musical scene; it opens with the singing of some segments from the Israeli declaration of independence and ends with the national anthem being sung to alternative lyrics written by Fouad Suleiman. Daniel Dworsky’s original music enriches the film with humor and satire. Tobias Morgan, a mentor at the Documentary Campus masterschool wrote: “Hard. Powerful. These films are increasingly like nail guns: sharp and fast, pinning critical ideas down so argument cannot be obfuscated, and the humanitarian issues squirm away into the half-flight of apathy”.Results:
• World premiere: Levante International Film Festival (in competition), Bari, Italy, November 2009.
• Israeli screenings: Tel Aviv, Haifa, and Jerusalem cinematheques, February 2010.
Director: Benny Brunner
Script benny Brunner & Mieke Bal
Editor: Benny Brunner
Producers: Benny Brunner & Alexandra Xela Films, and Cinema Suitcase