When your lover is considered your enemy, your relationship may have more at stake than the average affair. Selim and Ezra are lovers caught in the midst of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Selim is Palestinian and Ezra is Israeli. Samira and Edit met at a demonstration. They too are lovers. Samira is Palestinian, Edit is Israeli. The documentary feature "Zero Degrees of Separation" takes viewers on a unique journey through the complex lives of Israeli and Palestinian gays and lesbians in inter-ethnic relationships. Though living on the margins of society, these couples defy the odds, existing in the midst of conflict with a gentle humanity and mutual respect.
Interwoven with these stories is director Elle Flanders' own rich narrative of growing up with Zionist grandparents intimately involved in the founding of the state of Israel. Drawing the past into the present through the use of home movies, the director retraces her grandparents' travels as they tour a fledgling nation brimming with pioneering, joyous youth, immigrants, refugees and endless open vistas of the Holy Land. In stark contrast, the modern images of the Occupation expose the cracks in the country's foundation. Faced with endless barriers, the Palestinians in "Zero Degrees of Separation" must constantly detour roads, their own homes, their lands and their lives. And though violence is a daily intrusion, perhaps one of the greatest obstacles to Palestinian daily existence is the Israeli bulldozer as it destroys homes, builds barriers, settlements, bypass roads, and tears up what little is left of this land. Elle Flanders breaks with the sensationalistic media coverage of the violence in the Middle East by documenting the everyday lives of courageous, outspoken individuals as they take small steps towards peace, mutual respect and hope.
Production: Graphic Pictures Inc. (Toronto), The National Film Board of Canada
Screenplay: Elle Flanders
Cinematographers: Chris Romeike, Cala Levin, Elle Flanders
Sound: Tully Chen
Sound design: Jane Tattersall, Kathy Choi, Jean Bot
Composer: Dave Wall
Format: Digi Beta PAL, Color
Running time: 85 min.
Languages: Hebrew, Arabic, English
