2021 Filmmaker In Residence
HALF FREEDOM is a documentary focused on the lives of African asylum seekers in Israel and their relationships with their Israeli and Palestinian neighbors, exploring questions of migration, nationalism, and human rights in a country shaped by political conflict. The film follows two refugee activists, Bluts a Christian political dissident from Eritrea and Hasan a Muslim genocide survivor from Darfur, as they fight to maintain their lives and relationships in Israel while facing discrimination and incitement from right wing politicians. Filmed in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and Israel’s Holot Detention Center between 2015 and 2018, Half Freedom centers around two major issues during this period; mass incarceration under the Anti-Infiltration Act (which criminalizes refugees for crossing the Sinai border) and the 2018 deportation plan by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu under this same law.
Rebecca Pierce is a journalist and documentary filmmaker based in San Francisco, California. Her multimedia storytelling covers a diverse range of topics including race, religion, global conflict, and human rights. She has a BA in Film and Digital Media from UC Santa Cruz and was an Affiliate Fellow at Harvard's Religion, Conflict, and Peace Initiative. Rebecca’s work as a filmmaker has taken her around the world with projects shot in the Middle East, Asia Pacific region, Europe, and the United States. Her essay writing and public speaking on racial justice issues affecting African American and Jewish communities has been featured by The Nation, The New Republic, Jewish Currents, The Forward, and NPR's All Things Considered.
Project description and bios courtesy of the Resident