Bethlehem to Brooklyn: Breaking the Surface

This is a fine example of how you use the shrunken global space of the Information Age to educate and promote understanding. How wonderful is it to have young Palestinians and their American, inner-city peers, both struggling to find a non-violent path out of stressful life situations, communicating, commiserating with and helping each other make sense of their very different worlds? Fran Tarr has done great work in framing the plight of Palestinian youth in war time through the more familiar lens of young people coming of age in the "war zones" of Brooklyn, NY. It is quite touching to watch teens bridging the cultural gap, transcending language, religion and historical circumstance to focus on commonalities such as sport and music as they struggle with ambition, tragedy and desire to overcome their environment and build a better life. I was so impressed with the maturity and forward looking attitude of these kids. Their take on interactions with soldiers in Palestine and the police in Brooklyn are strangely similar to a degree you would not expect in contexts so different and half a world apart. If you are interested in a larger understanding of the lives and perspectives of these two groups and the challenges they face, you must see this film.

I'm a teacher at Independence High School, the stateside setting of the film. Many of the students portrayed in Bethlehem to Brooklyn are in my classes. As this project was progressing last school year, I saw my students grow in a number of ways. First, simply communicating with others halfway across the planet made their own world that much smaller. "There" became a lot closer. Anyone who has ever had an international pen pal knows that feeling. Very quickly, those communications led to the realization that "us" and "them" didn't make a lot of sense. None of this is new territory. What makes this particular pairing of demographics so intriguing, and thus the film that much more fascinating, is the oppression they share. While my kids don't live in refugee camps, they do live in neighborhoods where getting patted down for no reason is common. And like their Palestinian brethren, they have to deal with the taint of guilt they carry as a result of those few among them that are indeed troublemakers. It was this recognition, that teenagers 10,000 miles away were going through the same exact struggles, that really woke my kids up. They not only felt validated - something they are rarely led to feel - but they came to understand the universality of struggle. When they learned that, they learned empathy.

This is an important film and a touching one.

Great trailer and great film! It's relatively short (less than an hour) but very moving and powerful. I can't wait to see what's next from Fran and these kids. I think the story has only just begun. I want to see more from the students. I want to see who they become as they grow older, I want to see more of their families and more interaction between the two groups. I'm also really interested in learning more about the political realities for these kids and if they're involved/engaged in any way or if their focus is more on their own personal day-to-day lives.

I wonder if there's a website or a way for people who have seen the film to support Fran and the students at these schools? There should be a way for people to connect, to make donations of time, skills, money, or items needed to encourage the writing/performance program.

This is certainly a film that inspires the audience to take action.

This is an absolutely fantastic, moving, relevant film and I think everyone should see it, especially our leaders! I had the pleasure of watching the film in an earlier version. It is so moving and inspiring to me that children from such different backgrounds are so willing to put themselves in each other's shoes, and find common ground and understanding. My hat is off to Fran Tarr and the other filmmakers for this brave, honest, and compassionate human story. I hope that the film goes to to gain the widest possible exposure; that it can be used to increase understanding between groups of both children and adults, and to show everyone what is possible and how much we are all truly alike. Congratulations! - Karen Kohlhaas

A really interesting development of an idea for a documentary that relates to me directly. Everyone looking to gain a greater cultural understanding should see the film. All students have life expenses from having to pay for transportation to deal with graduating from high school to guitar practice and it is commendable to see young students give their time and effort to something voluntarily. The other comments pertaining to the genuineness of the efforts put forth by those in the documentary seems to be a true reflection of who they all are as people. The trailer is a window to peek at another part of our world after viewing it i am impressed. It is a very sensitive topic which parallels the lives of students from places that appear unrelated at first that is my reaction. The film warrants more exposure and the students and film makers should update their IMDb bios to connect more with people. I think if technology was not where it is communication to make this film would have been difficult .