Must-See: Palestinian Gay Lives in Oriented

New talent Jake Witzenfeld takes a look at the LGBT community of Tel Aviv in his directorial debut, Oriented. The documentary takes place over 15 months, through the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in 2014, and follows three Palestinian friends living in Tel Aviv as they face struggles with their nationality and sexuality.

Khader, son of a notorious Muslim mafia family lives with his Jewish boyfriend, David. Although legally Israeli, Fadi doesn't identify as such and doesn't feel he has the right to call himself a Palestinian. Instead he just defines himself as Arab. Naim struggles with coming out to his parents, something he feels empowered to do whenever he's in Tel Aviv, but anytime he goes home, his return is met with crippling insecurities.

Confronting their own identities, Khader, Fadi, and Naim create a group called "Qambuta, a non-violent, cultural resistance movement fighting for gender and national equality." The film also confronts the idea, as Khader states that "the west has monopolized concepts of liberalism and being out of the closet."

Oriented will show in New York at the Wythe Hotel, in Williamsburg, on June 22, and at the Crosby Hotel, in SoHo, June 25. Watch the trailer below.

For more information and screening times, go to OrientedFilm.com

[H/T: Paper]