{"id":645071,"date":"2024-11-23T23:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-11-23T20:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/the-other-oz-an-israeli-documentary-youll-likely-never-see\/"},"modified":"2024-11-23T23:00:00","modified_gmt":"2024-11-23T20:00:00","slug":"the-other-oz-an-israeli-documentary-youll-likely-never-see","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/the-other-oz-an-israeli-documentary-youll-likely-never-see\/","title":{"rendered":"#The Other \u2018Oz\u2019: An Israeli Documentary You\u2019ll Likely Never See"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\tThe 1,500 guests who arrived at the Beverly Hills Temple of the Arts on Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills on a balmy mid-October evening had to pass a squadron of armed guards, go through a metal detector, and have their IDs checked before taking their seats inside the\u00a0Saban Theater.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tThe security was a fitting prelude to what they were about to see on the screen, the American premiere of Oz\u2019s List, The Journey of Oz Davidian<\/em>, an Israeli-made documentary about the Oct. 7, 2023 terrorist attack on Israel that ignited the current Middle East conflict.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tThe one-hour, made-for-TV Hebrew language film follows the story of a 53-year-old farmer and lawyer \u2014 his name is pronounced O-zehz \u2014 who put his own life on the line to save some 120 young Israelis who scrambled for safety as hundreds of Hamas terrorists shot, raped, tortured, killed and took hostage anyone in their gun sits at what had been a peaceful music festival.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tDriving an Israeli government issued Mitsubishi 4\u00d74 truck (equipped with front and rear automatic cameras) assigned to him for his role as liaison to the Bedouin community, Davidian carried a single handgun and one clip of ammo for protection as he navigated back roads he once used for herding sheep. He made about 15 trip<\/a>s that long day to rescue terrified concertgoers and return them to their anxiously waiting families, with terrorist bullets often whizzing by his truck.<\/p>\n

\n\tMany in the Saban theater were visibly moved by the film, which re-traced Davidian\u2019s actions on that fateful, terrible day and includes actual footage from his truck cams.\u00a0\u201cIt was an amazing story,\u201d said one audience member. \u201cEspecially where he had to go through and see all these people that were dead.\u00a0What he did took a lot of courage.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tAnd yet, despite the film\u2019s universally positive reception \u2014 and its heroic, inspirational message \u2014 it\u2019s unlikely this documentary by Israeli TV station Reshet 13 and others will ever be screened in America again, let alone broadcast or streamed on American television.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThere are people who\u2019ve got balls and there are people who ain\u2019t got balls,\u201d observes veteran producer Bill Mechanic of the current political climate in Hollywood, particularly when it comes to material touching on the Middle East. \u201cSo, the people afraid of their shadows, who live to protect their jobs, are not going to want to take a chance.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThose fears cast a wide shadow right now \u2014 and you can\u2019t entirely blame the town for treading carefully around this subject matter. In many ways, it has become a third rail in the entertainment industry, a radioactive topic that has already burned a number of folks who have bravely \u2013 or foolishly \u2013 broached it.<\/p>\n

\n\tAfter it was learned in September that Hamas had killed six Israeli hostages, WME Agent Brandt Joel furiously wrote on a pro-Israel WhatsApp<\/a> group, \u201cScrew the left kill all.\u201d Brandt quickly deleted the post and explained to his colleagues in a Zoom call he only meant \u201ckill\u201d members of Hamas, but the damage had been done: one of his top clients, Mahershala Ali, abruptly fired him.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tOn the other side of the political divide, actress Susan Sarandon, who has a long history of activism, was dropped by her talent agency after she declared at an anti-Israel rally that Jews facing increased anti-Semitism are \u201cgetting a taste of what it feels like to be a Muslim\u201d in America.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tPolarized views on the subject have even made older content, released before the Hamas attack and Israel\u2019s Gaza offensive, newly controversial.\u00a0The Netflix series<\/a> Fauda<\/em>, for instance, which earned praise for its strong storytelling when it premiered in 2016, has faced criticism in its fourth season, which began in 2023, for glorifying the occupation of Palestinian lands.\u00a0The Occupation of the American Mind<\/em>,\u00a0a 2016 documentary delving into how the Israeli government supposedly uses its influence to shape American media, has drawn recent fire from both sides, with Jewish critics calling it anti-Semitic and Arabs claiming it distorts their cause.\u00a0Likewise,\u00a0the 2018 Egyptian spy thriller The Angel<\/em>, set during the Six Day War in 1967, has been blasted by both sides for its portrayals.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tIn such a cautious climate, it\u2019s difficult to image how a new documentary like Oz\u2019s List<\/em> could possibly find a home in Hollywood. \u201cWe\u2019re in a topsy-turvy world,\u201d says Garth Ancier, a TV executive who has worked at NBC and Fox and headed BBC America.\u00a0Ancier says he has both Jewish and Arab friends and what they have in common is that both are very narrow in their view, only seeing one side. \u201cI try to talk them off that ledge,\u201d he says. \u201cBut it\u2019s hard. And it is getting harder because of the way it\u2019s going down over there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tTo be fair, Oz<\/em> has other issues apart from politics that make it a tough sell in Hollywood. For one thing, it\u2019s a Hebrew language doc. For another, it\u2019s extremely violent.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cObviously the content in this video is graphic,\u201d says streaming media consultant Dan Rayburn. \u201cSo, you\u2019re going to see more pushback from these streaming services. You\u2019re showing dead bodies on the ground. That\u2019s not really something they want on their platform. Even 60 Minutes<\/em>, which does some great stories like that, you\u2019ll notice they\u2019re not showing anything that graphic.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cAnd what about rating it, right?\u201d he adds. \u201cIs this NC 17? That gets very tricky when you\u2019re talking about war and showing real life dead people on the street.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tOz<\/em>\u2019s Lists\u2019<\/em> producers are obviously aware of the uphill battle they face to get their documentary on screens in the U.S. But they\u2019re\u00a0currently working on assembling an \u201cinternational\u201d version that they hope will stand a better chance. \u201cWe may change the narration to English or insert some new images so we might make a bigger impression in terms of selling it,\u201d says\u00a0Yossi Eli, an Israeli war correspondent who made Oz\u2019s List<\/em> without compensation.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tEli says they are also considering a feature film, which may eventually be a \u201cstand alone drama different from the documentary.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tEfforts are also underway to submit Oz\u2019s List<\/em> for awards and festivals, led by L.A. filmmakers Dan and Zahara Israely, who produced Papa<\/em>, now airing on Amazon.<\/p>\n

\n\tDavidian, meanwhile, has returned to living his low-profile life with his wife and four daughters. He agreed to cooperate with this documentary at the urging of many of those he rescued, who he has kept in touch with. Several are quoted in the documentary expressing their thanks and calling him a hero.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tHe also made a rare public appearance on Oct. 30 at a new awards ceremony held in the residence of Israel\u2019s President Isaac Herzog. Davidian was among those who received the state\u2019s highest civilian award for extraordinary heroism.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tMany of the honors were presented posthumously.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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