Rock in the Red Zone (2015): Poster, cropped
Israeli Documentary Film Series
Wednesday, January 20, 20166:30 PMUCLA James Bridges Theater
Co-sponsored by the UCLA Department of Ethnomusicology and Mickey Katz Endowed Chair in Jewish Music
About the Film
On the edge of Israel’s Negev Desert lies Sderot, a city of factory workers and rock musicians, the children of refugees from North Africa and the Middle East. It is a town whose residents have been pummeled for years by homemade missiles from Gaza. In underground bomb shelters, they create unique rhythms that have transformed Israeli music, injecting Middle Eastern influences into traditional Western beats. Searching for a story about music, filmmaker Laura Bialis presents a tale of music and romance on the frontlines of a never-ending war. The film also reveals much about the diversity of Israeli society and the psychological stress and ongoing trauma experienced by its citizens. WATCH THE TRAILER
Includes music by Teapacks, Knesiyat Hasechel (Church of Reason), Sfatayim (Lips), Avi Vaknin, and Micha Biton
"Rock in the Red Zone" is the best and most important Israeli documentary I've seen in years. Nothing comes close to getting inside the Israeli psyche and soul." - Yossi Klein Halevi
"Rock in the Red Zone" is the story of the power of music, a local rock 'n' roll filled as much with anger and despair as with yearning and hope for peace." - Danna Harman, Haaretz
"..not only a celebration of music’s capacity to help people process, and articulate, pain and suffering, but an inspiring portrait of unity, and love, flourishing under horrific circumstances." - Film Journal International. Read the full review: http://www.filmjournal.com/reviews/film-review-rock-red-zone
"One of the best Israeli docs ... ever." - David Brinn, The Jerusalem Post (on Twitter). Read the full review:
http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Culture/Film-Review-Rock-in-the-Red-Zone-Directed-by-Laura-Bialis-385995
The screening will be followed by a conversation with the producer-director, Laura Bialis and Professor Mark Kligman, UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music and Mickey Katz Chair in Jewish Music
87 minutes; in English and Hebrew, with English subtitles
About the Producer/Director
Laura Bialis’ work as producer and director has ranged from documentaries about human rights and global conflict, to commercial projects. REFUSENIK, Laura’s critically-acclaimed documentary about international human rights campaign to free Soviet Jewry, was theatrically released in 15 cities across the United States, and in over 50 community screenings internationally. It has been broadcast in Israel on IBA Channel 1, and Yes Doco. VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE: Stories from Kosovo, premiered at the Slamdance Film Festival and was broadcast on television in a number of European markets. The film was used by the European Union and NATO to train its staff working to rebuild Kosovo. TAK FOR ALT – Survival of a Human Spirit, the story of Holocaust survivor turned civil rights activist Judy Meisel, first brought Laura’s filmmaking to the attention of viewers across the United States. The film aired on PBS and was honored by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as “one of the outstanding films of 1999.” Hundreds of thousands of high school students have viewed the film as part of Holocaust education programs along with an accompanying curriculum guide. To this day, the film continues to screen yearly in schools across the United States. Laura holds a B.A. in History from Stanford University, and an M.F.A. in Production from the USC School of Cinema-Television.
Sponsor(s): Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for Israel Studies, Ethnomusicology, Department of Music