A documentary about the viewpoints of different women of different religions in Haifa. Filmmaker Iris Zaki finds work as an employee of a salon and talks to her customers to learn their life stories.
Iris herself is Jewish and one of her first customers is an Arab who says she was raised to dislike Jews. Another customer, named Helen, happens to have been raised in a half Arab, half Jewish family, but she is more interested in Christians. Most of the discussions centre around what women think of the Arab community and their sharing of their life experiences. Other discussions include what men are like (sometimes) and even bringing up stories about their family members.
Despite religious and political differences between many of these women, there still is a lot of positivity in the community. Almost all of the documentary consists of a shot that’s shown to be right above a salon sink where the customers get their hair washed, and on occasion, some dishes get washed in there as well.
The documentary provides a strong durable message and teaches people about Arabic lifestyle among women as well. Whether women are Muslim, Jewish, Christian or whatever, these confidential stories revealed aren’t as hostile and biased as viewers might expect. If anything, there is a positive view in every woman’s life. Catch this at TJFF over at Alliance Francaise on May 8 at 3:30 PM, or at Cineplex Cinemas Empress Walk 6 on May 10 at 3 pm.
Women in Sink | Teaser from Iris Zaki on Vimeo.