Double Selfie
or, the simple solution to all our problems in the Middle East
Can two women - one Palestinian, and one Israeli - join forces to try to win a Jerusalem-based selfie contest - without killing each other in the process? Double Selfie is a ‘satire with a heart,’ a buddy film meets “Borat.” Much of the production (in English, Hebrew, and Arabic) will be high energy improvisation - actors thinking and risking on their feet, in locations both public and private.
The story takes place during the 2015 - 2017 “Stabbing Intifada,” which has raised the heat in Israel/Palestine, and especially in Jerusalem.
Maryam Abdulazziz and Sara Goldstein are thoroughly modern residents of Jerusalem. Both have just turned 30, and both are now rediscovering their religious roots - but with their own feminist emphasis. Both recently decided to wear head coverings - stylish print hijab on Maryam, and “mitpachat” head scarf on Sara. When not on Facebook or going to Jerusalem music clubs, in our opening scene they are at their mutual Ground Zero: Sara praying at the Kotel (the Western Wall), Maryam up above at Al Aqsa.
Maryam's Jerusalem family home is due to be demolished by the Israeli authorities for unauthorized building, unless they pay a $25,000 fine. That night, her eye is caught by a Facebook ad – a photo of the Dome of the Rock and the Western Wall below, with the headline, “ARE YOU ONE OF THE TRULY COURAGEOUS ONES?” She reads on: "Can one Jew and one Muslim create peace in the Middle East?"
Later, Maryam to her friend: “How in Allah's name am I going to meet a Jew who wants to do this contest with me?! A Palestinian and a Jew have to take a selfie together in 10 different places they announce on the website. This is evil! One challenge is announced each week - the pair who gets successfully to the end with the most Instagram ‘likes’ wins FIFTY. THOUSAND. DOLLARS.”
The next day, a dusty Old City hummus joint. Maryam awkwardly starts a conversation with a Jewish girl at the neighboring table, who with her head wrap, looks like a damn settler: Sara. In the next few days, under pressure from the deadline of the impending first Challenge, the two women become Facebook friends, and decide to jump in together to the Contest.
The story takes place during the 2015 - 2017 “Stabbing Intifada,” which has raised the heat in Israel/Palestine, and especially in Jerusalem.
Maryam Abdulazziz and Sara Goldstein are thoroughly modern residents of Jerusalem. Both have just turned 30, and both are now rediscovering their religious roots - but with their own feminist emphasis. Both recently decided to wear head coverings - stylish print hijab on Maryam, and “mitpachat” head scarf on Sara. When not on Facebook or going to Jerusalem music clubs, in our opening scene they are at their mutual Ground Zero: Sara praying at the Kotel (the Western Wall), Maryam up above at Al Aqsa.
Maryam's Jerusalem family home is due to be demolished by the Israeli authorities for unauthorized building, unless they pay a $25,000 fine. That night, her eye is caught by a Facebook ad – a photo of the Dome of the Rock and the Western Wall below, with the headline, “ARE YOU ONE OF THE TRULY COURAGEOUS ONES?” She reads on: "Can one Jew and one Muslim create peace in the Middle East?"
Later, Maryam to her friend: “How in Allah's name am I going to meet a Jew who wants to do this contest with me?! A Palestinian and a Jew have to take a selfie together in 10 different places they announce on the website. This is evil! One challenge is announced each week - the pair who gets successfully to the end with the most Instagram ‘likes’ wins FIFTY. THOUSAND. DOLLARS.”
The next day, a dusty Old City hummus joint. Maryam awkwardly starts a conversation with a Jewish girl at the neighboring table, who with her head wrap, looks like a damn settler: Sara. In the next few days, under pressure from the deadline of the impending first Challenge, the two women become Facebook friends, and decide to jump in together to the Contest.
First Challenge: Double Selfie, on top of the Temple Mount. This problematic place - where a giant riot started the Second Intifada, and where more and more right wing Jews believe the Third Temple will be built one day soon, ushering in the coming of the Messiah. One sunny morning, the two women meet next to the Dome and pose - a Moslem and a Jew - “click”. They upload it to the contest website via iPhone, just in time - success.
Our story careens ahead, the next Challenge concerns those male religious authority figures: Bring a big happy dog to the office of a sheikh, interview him about the negative view of dogs in Islam, and for bonus points, include the sheikh - with the dog in his lap - in the Selfie. Dogs are viewed traditionally as "unclean" - and if one licks you, a ritual bath is needed. Sara's black lab, Sam, "unclean"? No way!
The challenges done in public might be the hardest: (and how many of the contestant pairs are same sex?): Lip lock in public, surrounded by 100 Orthodox Jewish men in black. “Oh my God.” “Don’t worry - if Borat could do it, so can we.” And they go to (the real) Mea Shearim, the Orthodox neighborhood, and risk life and limb - for a simple kiss.
But meanwhile, in the background of all these double selfie adventures, the “Stabbing Intifada” continues - teen boys knife other teen boys, and soldiers shoot to kill. The stabbers are heroes to many Palestinians, and simple terrorists to many Israelis.
One morning, Sara discovers an inflammatory graphic on Maryam's Facebook page - a huge heroic knife - the red blood on it becoming part of a Palestinian flag design. The women meet to plan the next Challenge, but have a huge blow out. Shouting and screaming, they're rescued by the bonds of their feminism, their anger towards the authoritarian men in their religions - and by humor. Maryam asks Sara, "If I can get you to laugh, you won't kill me?!"
Our story careens ahead, the next Challenge concerns those male religious authority figures: Bring a big happy dog to the office of a sheikh, interview him about the negative view of dogs in Islam, and for bonus points, include the sheikh - with the dog in his lap - in the Selfie. Dogs are viewed traditionally as "unclean" - and if one licks you, a ritual bath is needed. Sara's black lab, Sam, "unclean"? No way!
The challenges done in public might be the hardest: (and how many of the contestant pairs are same sex?): Lip lock in public, surrounded by 100 Orthodox Jewish men in black. “Oh my God.” “Don’t worry - if Borat could do it, so can we.” And they go to (the real) Mea Shearim, the Orthodox neighborhood, and risk life and limb - for a simple kiss.
But meanwhile, in the background of all these double selfie adventures, the “Stabbing Intifada” continues - teen boys knife other teen boys, and soldiers shoot to kill. The stabbers are heroes to many Palestinians, and simple terrorists to many Israelis.
One morning, Sara discovers an inflammatory graphic on Maryam's Facebook page - a huge heroic knife - the red blood on it becoming part of a Palestinian flag design. The women meet to plan the next Challenge, but have a huge blow out. Shouting and screaming, they're rescued by the bonds of their feminism, their anger towards the authoritarian men in their religions - and by humor. Maryam asks Sara, "If I can get you to laugh, you won't kill me?!"
Maryam redeems herself by showing Sara a crazy cartoon of a hairy old rabbi and sheikh - the sheikh is naked, kneeling, a big yellow celebrity-style star covering his anus, with words above, “MOHAMMED, A STAR IS BORN.” Maryam adds, “Men - they’re all freaking gay.” Sara agrees: "Yep, or terrified of being gay."
Friends again, they slowly unwrap their coverings, revealing for the first time (to us and to each other) their hair. Big grins. Two beautiful women. Then they cover their hair again, wearing each other’s cloth wraps.
They passed the challenge on the Temple Mount - so, next week's challenge right below, at the Western Wall, should be easy: You're experts at getting past checkpoints by now, so it's time to enter the heart of Judaism: you have to pray together at the Western Wall.
Time for a bit of a disguise at the Kotel (the Hebrew name for the ancient Wall): both women wear Jewish hair coverings, easy enough. But Sarah proposes they go for a special selfie: in the last few years, women activists have often been arrested at the Western Wall for wearing prayer shawls (the Jewish tallit) and holding a Torah (both of these considered by Orthodox Jews to be strictly for males). So of course Sara makes sure they each wear a tallit, and she smuggles in a tiny torah scroll, which she unrolls for the double selfie, quickly! - click! - two women daring to stand up for their feminine spiritual power.
And then of course there's the Tel Aviv Challenge: Your job - you two peace seekers - is to find the most rad double selfie in the City of Sun and Sin - Tel Aviv. The beach is the obvious classic choice, but what other pairs would pose there wearing matching super-stylish, made-in-France, psychedelic burkinis?
Friends again, they slowly unwrap their coverings, revealing for the first time (to us and to each other) their hair. Big grins. Two beautiful women. Then they cover their hair again, wearing each other’s cloth wraps.
They passed the challenge on the Temple Mount - so, next week's challenge right below, at the Western Wall, should be easy: You're experts at getting past checkpoints by now, so it's time to enter the heart of Judaism: you have to pray together at the Western Wall.
Time for a bit of a disguise at the Kotel (the Hebrew name for the ancient Wall): both women wear Jewish hair coverings, easy enough. But Sarah proposes they go for a special selfie: in the last few years, women activists have often been arrested at the Western Wall for wearing prayer shawls (the Jewish tallit) and holding a Torah (both of these considered by Orthodox Jews to be strictly for males). So of course Sara makes sure they each wear a tallit, and she smuggles in a tiny torah scroll, which she unrolls for the double selfie, quickly! - click! - two women daring to stand up for their feminine spiritual power.
And then of course there's the Tel Aviv Challenge: Your job - you two peace seekers - is to find the most rad double selfie in the City of Sun and Sin - Tel Aviv. The beach is the obvious classic choice, but what other pairs would pose there wearing matching super-stylish, made-in-France, psychedelic burkinis?
Success after success. Will their making up after all those knock-down fights pay off? Will their bonds as women overcome their conflicts over the big mess in "Israstine"? Will they be able to delay Maryam’s family’s demolition order long enough to rise to the indescribable Final Challenge? - where they have to return to the Temple Mount/Al Aqsa, and take a final selfie....while they do what in that holy place?!
Or will all their progress be wasted - an impossible friendship in an impossible Land - and everything go down the drain?
Double Selfie brings together a combustible, outrageous mix of feminism and women's spirituality, Middle Eastern politics and religion - Arab vs. Jew, Palestinian vs. Israeli, women vs. men, reality vs. fiction.
******************************
Treatment © 2017, Harvey Stein
Screenplay available on request.
Contributions (tax-deductible in the United States) of $50 or more, can be made here:
http://tinyurl.com/d8hq9kd
Written by Harvey Stein, Lina Barakat, Vered Post, and Osama Abed
Director: Harvey Stein
Producers: Gidi Avivi, Harvey Stein, Melissa Athens
CONTACT: Harvey Stein
email: [email protected]
www.jerusalemny.com/doubleselfie111
phone: 972-50-212-8132
skype: harveystein33
Or will all their progress be wasted - an impossible friendship in an impossible Land - and everything go down the drain?
Double Selfie brings together a combustible, outrageous mix of feminism and women's spirituality, Middle Eastern politics and religion - Arab vs. Jew, Palestinian vs. Israeli, women vs. men, reality vs. fiction.
******************************
Treatment © 2017, Harvey Stein
Screenplay available on request.
Contributions (tax-deductible in the United States) of $50 or more, can be made here:
http://tinyurl.com/d8hq9kd
Written by Harvey Stein, Lina Barakat, Vered Post, and Osama Abed
Director: Harvey Stein
Producers: Gidi Avivi, Harvey Stein, Melissa Athens
CONTACT: Harvey Stein
email: [email protected]
www.jerusalemny.com/doubleselfie111
phone: 972-50-212-8132
skype: harveystein33
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Harvey Stein is an Israeli-American filmmaker from New York City, now living in Jerusalem, or as he sometimes calls it, “JerusaQuds.” His last feature documentary, “A Third Way - Settlers and Palestinians as Neighbors”, about Rabbi Menachem Froman (the notorious “settler rabbi for peace”), Ali Abu Awwad, and others, is now being shown extensively both in the United States and Western Europe. His previous screenplays have won two awards, and he is looking forward to returning to the world of fictional stories.
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Vered Post is an Israeli writer and performer. She was a co-writer for the original Israeli/Palestinian Sesame Street. She co-wrote several produced Israeli screenplays, and wrote the hit play "MacBroth", a takeoff on Macbeth, that had a 4-week run at NYC's La Mama. She also performed for many years in the Train Theater. She also teaches empowerment workshops for women on how to make short videos to help their business or career.
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Gidi Avivi (producer) is an Israeli film producer, the founder of Vice Versa Films. For more than 20 years, Avivi has produced successful Israeli documentary and fiction films, and TV series, many of which have been co-productions with other countries. His last film was ”East Jerusalem, West Jerusalem”, which followed the making of Israeli pop star and peace activist David Broza's hit CD of the same name.
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