Noa - Achinoam Nini

Pace of Peace Documentary & Website launched. www.paceofpeace.com

Italian Cultural Institute of Haifa ::
"Pace of Peace" is an important peace document: because the aim of the project is not only to make a cartoon, but to compare young people who represent two cultures, two peoples in conflict, to show that a common effort can be made, that collaboration between young Palestinians and Israelis can be constructive and pacifistic.
(Text used by courtesy of www.paceofpeace.com)

Gian Maria Turi Italian Cultural Institute of Haifa Updated: 9/26/2007 "Pace of Peace" is the name of a project promoted in 2004 by the Office for Peace in Jerusalem of the Municipality of Rome and the Castelli Animati association. Approximately twenty girls and boys, both Jewish Israelis and Palestinians, were invited to Rome in order to work together on an animated short-movie. Their creative care and the complicated organization of their trip to Italy were filmed and edited in a beautiful documentary, where the importance of the project and all the difficulties found on the road were caught in a model way. This documentary is an accompaniment to the animated short-movie, known also by the title of "Supercamel," which won a major prize at Venice Film Festival in 2004 and was broadcasted several times on the Italian television.

The Italian Cultural Institute of Haifa (Israel) came across this project last year. From the very beginning, they were fascinated by its simplicity along with its value as a document- a product available to anyone and able to show how people who are usually considered enemies can instead sit together and collaborate. For these reasons they thought it was worthwhile to promote these films in Israel and the National Palestinian Authority's territories. The Italian Cultural Institute of Haifa therefore gathered with partners of great importance, such as the Peres Center for Peace and the "Al-liqà Center, to start the first of its tasks - providing the Hebrew and Arabic subtitles.

The cartoon is presented without words, but is accompanied by a beautiful soundtrack performed by Noa (Achinoam Nini), an Israeli singer, and Rim Banna, a Palestinian singer. They continued by launching a website: www.paceofpeace.com, where anyone, at any time, may watch and enjoy the result of the children's work. The main goal of the site is the worldwide promotion of the animated film "Pace of Peace" and its related documentary. Furthermore, the Italian Cultural Institute of Haifa has now started distributing DVDs and informative brochures about "Pace of Peace" in Israel and the PNA's territories.

They are sending a newsletter about the website to major educational institutions in Israel, the Arab world, and English-speaking countries. Their target is to contribute to a new culture of peace and collaboration that can replace the old habits of competition and conflict. Those involved with the project are perfectly aware that "Pace of Peace" is a small seed thrown on arid soil, but they say they also know (and hope) that "from particular seeds, in time, can grow big and strong trees, whose roots will break down all walls built to separate peoples."

Visit the Pace of Peace website: www.paceofpeace.com