Educational Media Reviews Online

A powerful film of fact about the lives of everyday people passionately driven to “survive” and “celebrate life” in a land where no one can take flight or evacuate.

Some sociologists conclude that our global society, while enjoying an age of information so overloaded with data, lacks knowledge. Our knowledge becomes limited as we seek to sift through the information that is of interest to us. One consequence is that we ignore that which is least related to our own daily survival and social intercourse. Documentaries, though sometimes skewed by the director’s purpose, are one means to engage viewers and motivate their interests in knowledge about people and events otherwise remote to their own daily lives.

The format of this film presents the narrative accounts of several real life people who experience life in Gaza and who lived through Operation Cast Lead. We visit a mother trying to save neighbors from injury, fishermen who are continuously fired upon by Israeli patrol boats and we travel with Fida Qishta from Raffa in the south to Gaza City in the north. We experience first-hand her experiences in filming Operation Cast Lead. ”What is the point of who fired first?” she asks. The critical issues are the people in Gaza and how they must live through this. What is their escape from this occupation and collectivity? In the days following the end of Operation Cast Lead she is invited to meet a young girl named Mona. It is in Mona’s story we get the account of her plight during the attack by Israel and how she lost her family and survived the deadly event. But what is surprising is Mona’s calm demeanor. She keeps her emotions deep within her heart, not allowing others to see her hurt and loss. In this tragic account of survival is the true question of concern for the world to answer. What happens when a whole generation of children are constantly oppressed by, imprisoned, depicted as demonic, and regularly attacked by another group? What happens to these children when they must live under subjection to seeing their parents, family, friends and others hideously killed by rocket fire and phosphorous bearing missiles? What happens when a whole generation of children no longer show their feelings of happiness and sadness, to laugh and shed tears?

An excellent conclusion to this film is an update on each of the individuals who participated in sharing their narrative stories. A film trailer is available on the Where Should The Birds Fly website.

The film includes a study guide allowing the audience insight about the political tensions between Palestine and Israel. The study guide which is available online and in the DVD provides an excellent base line for understanding the plight of the people, particularly the children of Gaza. The Choices Video website posts a complimentary copy of the Guidebook which provides background data on Gaza, web links, a map, and a list of recommended readings.

Awards

• 2013 Alpha Accolade Award, Honolulu International Film Festival