God Went Surfing With The Devil

By: Editor | April 13, 2008 | Film

GOD WENT SURFING WITH THE DEVIL, A Documentary

The Middle East. A region seized by war, terror, and hatred. Israel and Gaza have seen some of the worst: fifty years of retaliatory strikes, with no end in sight. Yet beneath the rubble, the sniper killings, the mortar fire, the jihadist propaganda… guys are surfing. Despite being wracked by violence and continual conflict, the pressure point of Israeli-Palestinian relations is also home to a handful of young guys looking to do what young guys the world over do: lose themselves in the ocean. “We go to the beach to forget about the suffering,” says twenty-year old Gaza resident Mohammed Juda. 
 Drawing on the testimony of Israeli and Palestinian surfers, as well as politicians, soldiers, and militants, Alex Klein’s forthcoming doc, God Went Surfing with the Devil, appears to be a fascinating glimpse into the ravaged culture of Gaza.

The documentary will hear from Palestinians like Mohammed A’lwan about what it’s like to surf in a war zone. It will explore 16 year-old Omer Levin’s pursuit of sponsorship amidst the prospect of conscription. It will document life with Abdulla, an Arab-Israeli surfer who’s been shunned by fellow Arabs and attacked up by Jewish settlers. It will follow American Matt Olsen’s attempts to open Gaza’s first surf camp. It will speak to surfers, soldiers, militants and politicians. 

It will chronicle the lives of these incredible young men, Israeli and Palestinian, who have put down their guns and picked up surfboards, reaching out to each other with hope and love in their hearts.

http://godwentsurfing.com/story.html
Photo: Bryan Derballa/godwentsurfing.com

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