Noa Levin
Israel | 2012 | 14 min
Language : Hebrew
Subtitles : English, French
Srulik was born in Israel 17 years ago of Ethiopian extraction. Excluded from the education system, he now works as a cleaner and dreams of becoming a famous rapper. His songs give a voice to the youth of the Shapira district, comprising mainly Ethiopian Israelis in the small town of Gedera (30 km from Tel Aviv). A film that forcefully tackles the problem of racism in Israel.
Srulik was born in Israel 17 years ago. Excluded from the education system, he now works as a cleaner and dreams of becoming a famous rapper. His songs give a voice to the youth of the Shapira district in the small town of Gedera (30 km from Tel Aviv), populated since the 1970s and 1980s mainly by Ethiopian immigrants after the Israeli government recognised them as Jews in 1975. Directed in the context of “Otherwise”, a series of short documentaries about fringe culture produced by Tel Aviv University’s Department of Film and Television, this film forcefully tackles the problem of racism in Israel. “When I started filming them, one of the members of the band Israel, nicknamed Srulik, immediately caught my eyes and ears. I decided the film would focus on him. Srulik turned out to be charming, intelligent, and a natural performer. […] When approached by a producer, Srulik faced a tough choice: he had to decide whether to hop on the road to fame, or remain true to himself and his music.” (NL)
Emilie Bujès
