culture
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TV review
Passion and persecution: The personal involvement of the creators of "Being a Free People" is its honey and sting
"Being a Free People", which reviews the history of trance in Israel, renews a little and plays too much the mantra of discrimination, so that sometimes a feeling of a loop is created that it is impossible to get out of.
The weak point of the series is the choice to devote too little time to introspection and mental reckoning
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Trance
TV review
Nathan Lichter
Sunday, 29 August 2021, 08:21 Updated: 08:22
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Trailer for the docu-series "Being a Free People" about trance in Israel (Yes Doku)
This community deserves more.
She deserves a movie or series about the music itself, about artists who have developed genres in it or outlined a particular sound.
Deserves to be referred to other key people in the scene, artists who are no longer alive and artists who have created albums that are milestones
This month, one of the veterans of the psychedelic trance scene died of a heart attack: the British musician Wisdom (Space Tribe). Ofer Dikowski (Oforia), one of the founding artists of the Israeli trance scene, wrote about him in his eulogy that he was the first to attach the concept of "tribe" to trance through his stage name - Space Tribe. Dikowski is also one of the producers of the docu-series "Being a Free People - The Story of the Israeli Trance Tribe". The story of a tribe that developed into a world trance power. The three-episode series aired this weekend on Lis and Yudi, and starting today (Sunday) it will air on Sundays-Tuesdays at 10:30 PM on Yes Doku.
The promos for the series and the pictures from the obituaries may have made my feed more colorful than ever. Perhaps he was not only a veteran trance creator, but also a psychedelic-style fashion designer. Shares Facebook splashed out rain colorful fallen from one of deep sadness the community following the death, and on the other hand washed many joy and anticipation for the release of the documentary series produced in funding mass budget of a quarter million. But this is part of the essence of Israel has been one sadness to joy.
Creators of the series "Being a Free People" brings the story of the psychedelic trance community to the forefront. No long-term impact, just as the establishment cannot be defeated.This is a war that has been waiting for decades for a tiebreaker to decide.
Manages to hypnotize for long minutes. "Being a free people" (Photo: Yes Doku)
The series was directed, written and edited by Roy Finzi. He created it together with Ofer Dikowski and Alon Dotan. They are all people who come from the psychedelic trance scene. They created it from an inner outward view, one that stems from a strong love for it. This point of view is both the strength and the weakness of "being a free people."
At the beginning of the series, the creators explain the essence of music and how a small country like Israel has become a world trance power. They create a kind of introduction to psychedelic trance, introduce the founding fathers of the scene in Israel, describe how the political and security situation affected the members of the tribe and what characterizes the trance community in general. The photo quality is excellent. The production and editing that combines new materials, archive footage and colorful effects - excellent. The creators built the atmosphere very well. The series manages to mesmerize over long minutes of it. The creators manage to distill to the small screen the essence of trance culture for those who do not know it and create nostalgia among the scene's veterans.
It is difficult to lower the eyes and ears in large parts of the series.
And it also happens thanks to the selection of Eitan Reiter, one of the leading and high-quality creators of the trance scene, to create the soundtrack.
And the truth is that the soundtrack he wrote almost does not include trances, mainly ambient music, along with classical tracks that he chose to incorporate throughout the series.
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Not the first docu-document on the community.
"Being a free people" (Photo: Yes Doku)
The side of the police, except for written responses, was not heard.
It does not accept the right to speak but only the right to react, and this disadvantage resonates.
The creators do not interview police officers to explain their side, and just as the establishment often demonizes the community, so they demonize the police.
After the almost euphoric introduction, the creators draw an indictment against the police and the Knesset. Alongside the indictment, they do not hide the fact that there are drugs in the trance community, but emphasize that drugs are not the heart of the matter, only part of it. They use interviewees like Dan Komem and Asher Habib - one of the first producers of nature parties. Habib led the 1998 Give a Chance trance protest. Habib managed to sweep 50,000 people to Rabin Square. There they protested against the closure of many parties by the police and the attempt to eliminate the scene. They also interview members of the band Astral Projection, who were the first to create a psychedelic trance in Israel. Between their belongings.
Along with the indictment, the creators also combine interviews with cultural researchers who shed a positive light on the community and try to give it legitimacy in the eyes of the viewer who does not know it. A significant part of the series also features Prof. Yuval Ebenstein and Dr. Shachar Zirkin, both academics and key figures in the scene. This groundbreaking event receives significant attention in the series. The cancellation created a big noise not only inside the scene but also outside it, so the trance protest was re-ignited this time under the title "Let it dance quietly". The organizers of the big festivals gathered in protest, who on normal days competed with each other, but the situation led them to cooperate. The series provides a glimpse into this encounter, but it is a very superficial glimpse.
"Being a Free People" brings the passion in the eyes of the people of the scene, the love and also the deep pain and the feeling of persecution.
At certain moments interviewees like Dikowski, Raja Ram (half of the Shpongle duo) Habib and others, go into ecstasy with their love of music and parties, and at other moments the pain of institutional persecution spills out of their eyes.
It is very easy to connect to this pain even without loving or understanding the music, especially at this time when public confidence in the government has already seen better.
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Moments that are on the verge of horror.
"Being a free people" (Photo: Yes Doku)
"Being a Free People" is not the first docu-document on the community. It was preceded by "Bombs on the Road to the End of the World" by Ishari Halperin from 2000, which was screened at many festivals around the world, won awards and was also nominated for the Ophir Award (a film co-produced by Doron Sabri) and the film "Karhana" . "Being a Free People" recycles the messages from these films in order to explain to the viewer what exactly a psychedelic trance is and why he is persecuted.
To some extent the series serves as a sort of remake or boot for these films, and like a good remake, it manages to convey the message in a much more successful, sharp and colorful way. It is also produced in a much better and more professional way than them. The way she covers the behind the scenes of the parties is far more fascinating. The best moments of the series, include what goes on behind the scenes of the Purim Festival produced by Moksha in 2019, and show how the police arrive with new demands a few hours before the event opens. There are moments there that are on the verge of horror, because canceling a festival is a loss of hundreds of thousands of shekels to whoever produces it.
But the creators of "Being a Free People," with all the good intentions and passion and love for parties and music, do not innovate much, especially not for the trance community.
Even though they incorporate new footage and talk about events of recent years, it's still the same lady in a change of coat.
In fact they convince the convinced, providing veterans of the trance community mostly with long moments of nostalgia and less moments they were unaware of.
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Plays the discrimination mantra too much.
"Being a free people" (Photo: Haim Solomon)
At certain moments interviewees enter into ecstasy with their love of music and parties, and at other moments the pain of institutional persecution spills out of their eyes.
It is very easy to connect to this pain even without loving or understanding the music, especially at a time when public confidence in the government has already seen better
With all due respect to the protesting voice, the series renews a little and plays too much of the mantra of discrimination, so that sometimes a sense of loop is created that is impossible to get out of. The fact that Israel is a trance power and that the community is being persecuted and struggling for its existence is a snowball from last year. "Being a Free People" does make a polo up in protest by covering the "Let's Dance Quiet" events and the fact that the community was forced to move the parties to Sinai because conditions there are easier, but that is not enough. But this is where the significant innovation begins and ends: only those who have not watched "Bombs on the Road to the End of the World" and "Glacier" will get a fresh look at one of the most significant communities in Israel, and for him it will truly be the best auto-anthropological document made on the scene.
The weakness of the series is the choice to devote too little time to introspection and mental reckoning. Although the creators of the series do not hide the fact that drugs are not suitable for everyone, introduce the "Safe Beach" organization (which offers first aid to drug victims) and talk about the nature of producers 'responsibility to their audience, but these issues are swallowed up in the series' "I blame" manifesto . After all, the re-persecution was created after several deaths of partygoers at parties, which led to the police canceling festival after festival and tightening the license conditions to the level that such production became a matter from which one could only lose financially.
The side of the police, except for written responses, was not heard.
It does not accept the right to speak but only the right to react, and this disadvantage resonates.
The creators do not interview police officers to explain their side, and just as the establishment often demonizes the community, so too do they demonize the police.
Despite the difficulty of producing nature parties in the country, at many events one can see a beautiful collaboration between the producers and the cops.
Not every trance party closes and is canceled.
During the corona time a lot of illegal parties popped up all over the country, but even in this case, the creators do not bother to give an account on behalf of the trance community.
The series also does not address the commercialization of the scene, the retirement of veteran artists or their transition to the house and techno scene.
This process could easily have filled at least one more chapter.
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The series the community wants but not the one it needs.
"Being a free people" (Photo: Haim Solomon)
In addition, there is a feeling that the creators prefer not to publish the fact that a significant number of party producers in Israel are aware that they sell drugs at their parties, but that some, especially producers of small parties, sell drugs themselves at parties.
No producer is brought in, with a visible face or in a blur, who admits it.
Also, not everything is rosy within the community, some party organizers tend to inform each other about each other’s party to avoid competition on the eve of the event.
If creators had brought these dots, exposing the dirty laundry alongside the colorful clothes, they would have created a much more honest and interesting series.
"Being a Free People" is the series the community wants but not the one it needs.
The series is the result of a protest.
It is, in fact, at the moment, the spearhead of a protest that truly deserves understanding and appreciation.
A protest that the corona froze.
At the same time, the spearhead misses the point that the creators have sinned in what the media itself has sinned over decades.
Similar to the media, the series addresses trance mostly when something negative happens.
This community deserves more. She deserves a movie or series about the music itself, about artists who have developed genres or a particular sound note in it. They deserve to be referred to other key people in the scene, artists who are no longer among the living and artists who have created albums that are milestones. After all, Israel is a trance power with a world name and in the series there is hardly any reference to the development of music itself apart from parties. There are musicians with a fascinating life in the scene, and avoiding their story is a big miss. This is a very noticeable drawback in the series, it's a shame, because Dykowski has created quite a few video articles himself in recent years that included interviews with musicians as part of the "Transsav" project.
If the next docu-creation on the community grinds the introduction to trance again and engages in persecution, instead of addressing trance music and culture outside of nature and protest parties - it will be hugely missed. It's time for docu-creators in the community to treat themselves as they would like others to treat them. As legitimate. Until then the community will have to wait for more original things.
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