I often tend to write off self-serving documentaries that play more like promotional videos than they do actual pieces of cinema, however Karen Goodman and Kirk Simon‘s Oscar winning testament to the power of education might be the one exception.
Exuding messages of positivity and hope in the sincerest of ways, this 40-minute short on the Bialik-Rogozin public school in Tel Aviv is an eye-opening reminder of the value of what quality teachers mean to both a child and the community.
Little argument can be made for the usefulness and importance that education plays in everybody’s lives. With an open door policy to refugees and displaced children from all around the globe (children from 48 countries) the Bialik-Rogozin school and its model for educating is an inspiration to school systems the world over. Picture this strange concept, at Bialik-Rogozin they take the concept of “no children left behind” and make it a reality by teaching students based on their skill level, not their age. For instance, being that there are children attending the school from over 48 countries it is vital that they all learn one common language. Here that language happens to be hebrew and whether the child is 6 or 16 he or she will be in hebrew 101 with the others.
Yes, the school and its uniqueness is at the center of the film, but in following three students a glimpse into the practicality of this alternative education is demonstrated. 16-year-old Mohammed from Darfur came to the school after witnessing the killing of both his grandmother and father and is exceeding rapidly in his studies. 12-year-old Johannes from Ethiopia and a Sudan refugee camp has never seen a school before entering Bialik-Rogozin and started fluently speaking hebrew after only a few months of being at the school. Then there’s Esther, who witnessed her mother’s murder and takes to school with a big cool-aid grin.
There are no failures presented in the school, nor is there any dirt to be dug up regarding any of the politics surrounding the school and the absence of both these things is perfectly alright with me. So what if this film seems like a promotional advertisement for a really awesome k-12 school, the overall message by far outweighs its structural style. Strangers No More is about the universal notion of giving and a reminder of one of the simplest truths known, that if there is ever to be peace on earth it must first start with proper education.
Showtimes for Strangers No More:
Sat, Jul 23 – 12:00pm (Castro)
Thu, Aug 4 – 1:00pm (Roda – Berkeley)
Sat, Aug 6 – 1:00pm (Oshman – Palo Alto)
