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INTERVIEW Danny Hakim and Udi Kalinsky,co-producers for Shadya |
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Danny Hakim migrated to Israel from Australia in 2001. He is both the film’s producer and Shadya’s karate coach. He has taught karate for over 25 years and has studied extensively in Japan.
Udi Kalinsky is Israeli and has been producing documentaries for over 10 years. His films include “Total Eclipse” about the Batsheva Dance Company, “Judah and Mohammad,” and “Two States of Mind.”
Washington, D.C.’s ITVS Regional Outreach Coordinator Michon Boston interviews co-producers Danny Hakim and Udi Kalinksy about SHADYA, the documentary and working with the young karate champion and her family.
It’s rare that we see stories about Arabs who live in Israel. Tell me more about Israel’s Arab communities and how you worked with the Israeli Arab community to make this film. How does this Arab family cope as citizens of Israel?
DH: I was able to gain respect in the Israeli Arab community as an international karate instructor and as an Anglo foreigner. Shadya's family was open to me as I was able to prove to her father that I could take care of her and coach her to be a world champion.
As you can see in the film each member of the family has a different way of coping as an Arab Israeli citizen. The father is happy to be an Israeli as he is able to provide a good living for his family with all the benefits as an Israeli, i.e. education, social welfare, good health facilities etc. In terms of material benefits, they are much better off than their Palestinian cousins and they are free to live according to their own Arab Muslim customs.
UK: There is a lot of sensitivity between the Jews and the Arabs in Israel. This was dramatically enhanced after the Palestinian uprising in 2000 (the intifada) and again after the last war in Lebanon. The problem is a problem of loyalty some Arabs living in Israel feel towards their country (Israel) vs. their nationality (Arab). The fact that some Arab citizens of Israel identify with Israel's worst enemies, is causing distrust towards them among the Jewish population. Imagine the USA at war with Central American states and the immigrants from those countries identifying with their former countries. How would the Americans feel about that?
