DiaDocuMEntaRY: A series of videos by Dorit Naaman
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This series emerged out of an interest in diaries, home movies, and documentaries. But it is also a result of an attempt to speak about politics, particularly the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, from a very personal perspective. The media, and often documentaries as well, accentuate complex nuances to black and white positions, and simplify the conflict to a binary of “centuries old un-resolvable conflict. “ Aesthetically, these videos are intimate, personal, but not necessarily autobiographical. The tension between home- movie look and documentary aesthetics and techniques, serves to problematize the politics of representation, and our expectations that documentaries are objective and un-biased. At the same time, this embodied aesthetic carves a space for alternative political voices and perspectives.
This series emerged out of an interest in diaries, home movies, and documentaries. But it is also a result of an attempt to speak about politics, particularly the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, from a very personal perspective. The media, and often documentaries as well, accentuate complex nuances to black and white positions, and simplify the conflict to a binary of “centuries old un-resolvable conflict. “ Aesthetically, these videos are intimate, personal, but not necessarily autobiographical. The tension between home- movie look and documentary aesthetics and techniques, serves to problematize the politics of representation, and our expectations that documentaries are objective and un-biased. At the same time, this embodied aesthetic carves a space for alternative political voices and perspectives.
The Market’s Song
dir. Dorit Naaman. Israel & Canada, 1997. 4:30min.
A visit to the Jerusalem farmer’s market is at once a song of praise for beloved homeland food, and a questioning of nostalgic lamentation as a result of political immigration.
O' Canada, E.T. and Me
dir. Dorit Naaman. Canada, 1995. 7:00min.
A short video diary piece on immigrating to Canada post 9/11/01. The piece deals with Canadian nationalism, militarism and sports.
The Silver Platter
dir. Dorit Naaman. Palestine & Canada, 1997. 3:30min.
A meditation on martyrdom in both Palestinian and Israeli culture. An afternoon at an Israeli checkpoint in the West Bank is the backdrop for a letter from the filmmaker to a few children and soldiers she met at the checkpoint.
DiaDocuMEtary: A Piece in My Puzzle - DVD Collection
dir. Dorit Naaman. Canada, 2003. 55:00min.
Full collection of all DiaDocuMEntary films, now available for $90.00 CAD.
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Salem/Jeru
dir. Dorit Naaman. Jerusalem, 1995. 8:30min.
Road #1 in Jerusalem is an invisible border separating the Palestinian and Israeli Jerusalems. This short video travels on road #1 and deals with liminality, belonging, and national narratives.
Two Houses and a Longing
dir. Dorit Naaman. Jerusalem & Canada, 2000. 12:00min.
This video tells the story of two Palestinian homes whose owners fled during the 1948 war and the houses now serve a museum and a daycare centre. The video tackles the question of the right of return of Palestinian refugees, the workings of public and private memory and erasure, and the unearthing of these two houses’ story by the Israeli videomaker. Recipient of the Ir-Amim ”Jerusalem Moments” production grant, and group screening at the Jerusalem Film Festival, July 2008.
Jerusalem Walls: A Guided Tour
dir. Dorit Naaman. Jerusalem, 1998. 4:00min.
A slow and circular camera pan movement takes the viewer from Yemin Moshe, the first neighborhood outside the old city, to the walls built by Suleiman the Great, to the new cement wall Israel has erected in Abu Dis as part of it’s separation barrier. Set like a tourist guided tour, the video asks questions about Israel’s journey outside and inside various walls.
Home, Bitter/Sweet Home
dir. Dorit Naaman. Canada, Palestine & Israel, 1995. 16:00min.
A video project on the idea of home for a Palestinian, Salim Shawamareh, whose house has been demolished four times by the Israeli authorities, and for the filmmaker, until recently an oblivious bystander to politics in Jerusalem, and now an immigrant to North-America. In this documentary/political diary Salim's story illustrates not only the Palestinian tragedy, but also the estrangement of the Israeli filmmaker from her country and past indoctrination by the Zionist state. Building and destroying homes is not just a physical matter, but a psychological, ideological, and emotional issue, as the video demonstrates through a fluid movement between Canda, Palestine, and Israel. Sponsored in part by Trinity Square Video.
