UNDRESSING ISRAEL (GAY MEN IN THE PROMISED LAND)

Cinema Diverse: The Palm Springs Gay and Lesbian Film Festival, will screen two very different documentaries, both of which involve the State of Israel. On Friday, September 20, 2013, the first, which screens at 1pm, is documentary filmmaker, adult-film entrepreneur and political columnist Michael Lucas’ new film, UNDRESSING ISRAEL (GAY MEN IN THE PROMISED LAND). The second documentary, which screens at 1:30pm, is lesbian filmmaker Leora Eisenstein’s CHICKEN SOUP WITH KNIVES (Merak Of Im Sakinim).

UNDRESSING ISRAEL (GAY MEN IN THE PROMISED LAND) examines a side of Israel that is too often overlooked: its thriving gay community, and features interviews with a diverse range of local men, including a gay member of Israel’s parliament, a trainer who served openly in the army, a young Arab-Israeli journalist, and a pair of dads raising their kids.

The second documentary, is lesbian filmmaker Leora Eisenstein’s CHICKEN SOUP WITH KNIVES (Merak Of Im Sakinim). This powerful film chronicles her journey with her sister and a private detective to Lvov, Ukraine, her family’s hometown before World War II. There, she embarks on a search for her roots and lost family property taken during the Holocaust, as well as a sense of justice. Her journey seems straight-forward, but in reality, it encompasses a variety of personal reflections and troubling family confrontations.