Hillel hosts an advanced film screening that tells the story of Israeli high school student who are forced to fight in the Israeli Defense Forces.
A film screening will transport Athenians into a gripping, intimate look at the dramatic transformation of five young Israeli high school graduates made to become defenders of their people in the Israeli Defense Forces.
The documentary Beneath the Helmet: From High School to the Home Front screens on Thursday at 6 p.m. in Hillel at Ohio University, thanks to Jerusalem U in partnership with Alpha Epsilon Pi (AEPi), OU Hillel and Bobcats for Israel.
First Lt. Aviv Regev, an Israeli deputy platoon commander featured in the film, will attend the free screening. He will be speaking about his plights in the film, the experience of watching his life, where he is now and more.
“The film really is my story, and its really interesting to see how one captures one personal story,” Regev said. “We gave unprecedented access to our lives to this crew for the eight months they were filming, and it’s really interesting to me to see how they captured it all. It’s a really good feeling having your life immortalized on film, and I’m really glad it happened.”
This screening serves as the Athens premiere of the film, with Ohio University being one of the select universities so far given access to screen this film before its national release.
“The screening has been received very well so far,” Regev said. “It’s a very emotional movie, and its clear that the transformation of the army has been very powerfully captured, and audiences have received that very well.”
Jerusalem U, creators of the PBS-featured documentary Israel inside, creates and distributes innovative and stimulating films, according to their website, and were given full access to film and showcase the lives of these teens in their time of growth and danger. Therein by giving a harrowing depiction of the men and women soldiers of the Israeli Defense Force.
The biggest takeaway is that this is a human story, no matter what background you are from, you can relate to this tale.
“People can see just how different high schoolers are there than they are here,” said Max Peltz, AEPi’s student representative. “It’s interesting to see how they, instead of going to college, go straight to fighting for the army.”
Additionally, the soldiers’ tale is now preserved on film, something Regev takes to heart.
“Film is a very powerful tool,” Regev said. “You don’t need to be Jewish or in IDF to be impacted by this film. It connects on a very personal level, it opens your heart and you suddenly realize that these soldiers are just teenagers. We really wanted to have this movie try to explain what is happening.”
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