Critical Minds at Al Aroub Workshop

Each day after lunch we show one or two films from previous workshops and ask the Al Aroub youth for their comments. In the program’s first few days most of the kids’ responded with “helwa,” or “kiteer helwa” (beautiful/nice). They answered similarly during end-of-the-day check-ins we held to find out how everyone felt. In the past two days, however, the kids’ critical eyes and voices have started appearing. Today after the four small groups completed their initial storyboards, the larger group held critical discussions about the messages of each story and whether the plot contained a beginning, middle, and end. The stories focused on disabilities, the right to return, children collaborating with Israeli soldiers, and the gate to the camp, through which the Israeli army can prevent youth from attending school. We’ll be excited to see how the films are transformed and brought to life as the kids hammer out scripts and production plans and start shooting tomorrow!