Ruth Lev Ari

No Longer Achmed

Achmed Hamdoon, a young Arab Bedouin of the Hamdoon tribe, was raised in the family tin hut, a few meters away from the locked gate of Kibbutz "Lotem" in West Galilee, Northern Israel. Having longed for the kibbutz life most of his youth, he finally pulls out and moves to "Lotem", changing his name to the typically Israeli name Meidan Sade. The clan is outraged and sees him as a "traitor". But Meidan, no longer Achmed, feels he cannot access better opportunities in the Israeli society as a Bedouin. Indeed, he becomes "the first Hamdoon" to carry ammunition while guarding the Kibbutz, completes his high school...

Say Amen

Say Amen is a personal documentary film by David Deri, an Orthodox Jew, who reveals his homosexuality to his parents and siblings. David is the youngest of ten siblings in a close-knit Moroccan-Israeli family. While other nine have all extended the family tree by marrying and having children, David, at twenty-nine, still hasn't brought home a girlfriend, which inspires his family's constant nagging. The confessional film follows David as he takes small steps, gathering courage, and hoping to receive acceptance from his family.