Don’t just sit there on the couch or at your laptop – get up and do something! That’s the message that Amir Ben David, Yair Raveh and Gadi Shimshon want to send out with their call to action inspired by the 1976 film Network, written by Paddy Chayefsky and directed by Sidney Lumet. For those of you who are not adequately immersed in film history, in this cathartic scene, recently fired news broadcaster Howard Beale (Peter Finch won Best Actor for this one) inspires people everywhere to leave their television sets, get up off the couch, open their windows and yell: “I’m as mad as hell and I’m not taking it anymore!”
On August 23, 2011 at 18:30, Ben David, Raveh and Shimshon want everyone to open their windows and shout out a contemporary version of this call, film it and upload to YouTube, facebook, twitter…everywhere. The Hebrew message is:
“נמאס לי! התעוררתי! אני דורש צדק חברתי!”
Midnight East’s rough translation of the intent: “I’m not taking it any more! I finally woke up! I demand social justice!” Once the videos are online, the three are planning to collect and edit the material to create what just might be the longest ever protest video clip.
Midnight East chatted with Yair Raveh to find out more about the project. For Raveh, the message is far more important than the format. The idea is get as many people involved as possible, filming everywhere (yes, not just Israel – all over the world) and in any and every language. It’s not about sticking to the rules; it’s about being creative with your revolutionary urges, getting involved and getting the message out. Raveh wants people to film themselves, neighbors, friends, and strangers with their cameras, phones and any other equipment available, upload and paste a link onto the facebook event page (yes, click here and check out the page, some people have already uploaded clips).
What happens next is up to all of us.
Update – August 19, 2011: in recognition of the current situation, the editing of the video and publication of the collective protest clip will be postponed, but the project is still ongoing. The organizers encourage everyone to film themselves, friends and others. Say what’s on your mind and in your heart, upload the video and paste the link on the facebook event page.
