www.seanmcallister.com
Settlers
Tenfoot Films 2002
Director : Sean McAllister
Editor : Ollie Huddleston
Settlers
True Stories, Channel 4, 2000.
Jerusalem is an intense place at the best of times. Tonight's documentary
'True Stories:Settlers' was filmed in the city over the course of the last year when
tensions have been creeping upto boiling point. The release of Palestinian prisoners, the Israeli government granting
land to the Palestinians and the ongoing settlement of Jews in Arab Muslim areas formed the backdrop to director
Sean McAllister's riveting exploration of the settlement issue through the eyes of a Palestinian, Ali, and an ultra-Orthodox
Jew, Dov. 'The Middle East is usually dealt with in an academic way on TV,' explains McAllister. 'I wanted to focus in on
common, human things that audiences here can relate to.' The two subjects presented themselves to Mcallister almost entirely
by chance. First of all the director bumped into Ali, who'd spent 17 years in jail for planting a bomb.
While the self-styled terrorist-turned-tour-guide is showing him round, the larger-than-life showman Dov popped up to
insinuate himself into the filming process, just at the precise moment when McAllister was looking to counterbalance
Ali's views. Ali and Dov are both fascinating characters in their own ways - the contrast between their lives and
entrenched political opinions makes for a gripping dynamic.
© Kieron Corless, Time Out.
