Oriented is a 2015 Israeli-British documentary film directed by Jake Witzenfeld. The film follows the lives of three gay Palestinians living in Tel Aviv over a 15-month period. It is Witzenfeld's first feature documentary. The film premiered at Sheffield Doc/Fest in June 2015. [1]
Amara McLaughlin wrote for Moment that the film is "an intercultural revolution that traverses geography, nationality, religion, sexual orientation and migration." [2]
Tel Aviv-Yafo, often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a population of 460,613, it is the economic and technological center of the country. If East Jerusalem is considered part of Israel, Tel Aviv is the country's second most populous city after Jerusalem; if not, Tel Aviv is the most populous city ahead of West Jerusalem.
John Greyson is a Canadian director, writer, video artist, producer, and political activist, whose work frequently deals with queer characters and themes. He was part of a loosely-affiliated group of filmmakers to emerge in the 1980s from Toronto known as the Toronto New Wave.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Israel are considered the most developed in the Middle East. Although same-sex sexual activity was legalized in 1988, the former law against sodomy had not been enforced since a court decision in 1963. Israel became the first country in Asia to recognize unregistered cohabitation between same-sex couples, making it the first country in Asia to recognize same-sex unions in any capacity. Although same-sex marriages are not performed in the country, Israel recognizes same-sex marriages performed elsewhere. Discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation was prohibited in 1992. Same-sex couples are allowed to jointly adopt, following a landmark court decision in 2008. Previously, stepchild adoption, as well as limited co-guardianship rights for non-biological parents, were permitted. LGBT people are also allowed to serve openly in the military.
On 1 June 2001, a Hamas-affiliated Islamist terrorist blew himself up outside the Dolphinarium discotheque on the beachfront in Tel Aviv, Israel, killing 21 Israelis, 16 of whom were teenagers. The majority of the victims were Israeli teenage girls, whose families had recently immigrated from the former Soviet Union.
Avi Mograbi is an Israeli documentary filmmaker.
Mohammad Bakri is a Palestinian actor and film director.
The Bubble is a 2006 romantic drama directed by Eytan Fox telling the story of two men who fall in love, one Israeli and one Palestinian. The title of the film refers to Tel Aviv, a relatively peaceful city in a tumultuous region and the setting of the film.
Al-Nakba: The Palestinian Catastrophe 1948 is a documentary film of Benny Brunner and Alexandra Jansse. It follows the events that surround the 1948 Palestinian exodus. It was filmed in 1996, is 58 minutes long and is in English. Based on the book The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem, 1947–1949 by Benny Morris, it is the first documentary film to examine the displacement of 750,000 Palestinians during the birth of the state of Israel. The film shifts between interviews with Palestinian refugees and the reactions of Irgun and Haganah soldiers who witnessed and participated in the events of 1948.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, & transgender (LGBT) people in Palestine face legal challenges and discrimination not experienced by non-LGBT residents. According to Amnesty International's 2020 report on Palestine, "Section 152 of the Penal Code in Gaza criminalizes [male] consensual same-sex sexual activity and makes it punishable by up to 10 years' imprisonment." In 2019, the Palestinian Authority police banned the activities of queer and feminist rights organization Al Qaws, requesting that residents report 'suspicious' activities. The ban was later withdrawn by the end of the month following backlash.
Yair Qedar is an Israeli documentary filmmaker, social activist and former journalist.
Men of Israel is a 2009 gay pornographic film released by Lucas Entertainment studio. Journalists from The Atlantic, Out Magazine and Yediot Aharonot noted it as a landmark film as the first pornographic movie shot on location with an all-Israeli cast; while Tablet magazine and the Los Angeles Times remarked on it being the first to feature an all-Jewish cast. Director Michael Lucas—who is Jewish and obtained his Israeli citizenship in 2009—undertook the film as "a bold move to promote Israeli culture and tourism" and to counterbalance what he saw as biased portrayals of Israel in mainstream media.
Events in the year 2003 in Israel.
Events in the year 2003 in the Palestinian territories.
The 2011 Tel Aviv nightclub attack was a combined vehicular assault and stabbing attack carried out at 01:40 (GMT+2) 29 August 2011 in which a Palestinian attacker stole an Israeli taxi cab and rammed it into a police checkpoint guarding the popular nightclub, Haoman 17, in Tel Aviv which was filled with 2,000 Israeli teenagers. After crashing into the checkpoint, the attacker jumped out of the vehicle and began stabbing people. Four civilians, four police officers, and also perpetrator were injured in the attack. The perpetrator was living illegally in Israel at the time of the attack.
Would You Have Sex with an Arab? is a feature-length documentary film by French director Yolande Zauberman. It premiered at the 2011 Venice Film Festival, and released in France on 12 September 2012.
TLVFest or the Tel Aviv International LGBT Film Festival is an annual film festival held in Tel Aviv, Israel. The festival is focused on LGBT themed film from around the world.
The Jerusalem gay pride parade is an annual pride parade taking place in Jerusalem. Since the first March for Pride and Tolerance in 2002, Jerusalem Pride—"Love Without Border"—has become an established event in Jerusalem, each year bringing in additional partners and supporters.
On November 19, 2015, an assailant approached the entrance of a Tel Aviv synagogue at prayer time, and stabbed and killed two worshipers. The attacker was arrested.
Yariv (Mordechai) Mozer, is an Israeli film producer, screenwriter and film director.
Khader Abu-Seif is a Palestinian copywriter known for his LGBT rights activism.