By Shira Farbman
During our opening conference we had the privilege of hearing from Laizy Shapiro, creator of Srugim. During our conversation Shapiro spoke about his background, growing up with two American parents in Jerusalem, as well as the process of writing and directing his hit show. There were a few aspects of our time with him that particularly stood out to me. First of all, he spoke of how prior to Srugim there was no television show that shed light on the “Dati Leumi” (Modern Orthodox) community in Israel. This large subset of orthodoxy, one which is far less insular than a Charadi population though strictly abides by halacha is fundamental to Israeli culture yet not spoken of often. The notion of unveiling a narrative that is underrepresented is now a recurring concept in our Nachshon Project programming, which I believe was first revealed in our conversation with Shapiro.
Another reason I found this discussion particularly illuminating was that it was one of our first activities together as a cohort. After a long day of seminars and goal-setting, it was incredibly enjoyable to sit together and hear from someone who is well-known throughout Israeli media. Prior to speaking with Shapiro, we each watched a few episodes (or the entirety) of Srugim which we spoke of throughout the opening conference. Over meals we would cheerfully argue over who our favorite characters are or examine a particular plot line. These conversations alone, I believe, were useful in breaking the ice between fellows and we did so all while discussing an aspect of Israel. Aside from describing his work with Srugim, Shapiro also showed some of his favorite clips from the show and would talk about how it was made and why he loved it. In essence, bringing in Laizy Shapiro was a fun way to begin to bond as a cohort.
Lastly, one of my biggest takeaways from Shapiro was learning about what is the driving force behind writing a good television show or movie, and that is conflict. When he showed a clip, he would ask what we believed was the conflict and what the episode might look like—and how boring it would be—without that tension between characters or what have you. While the audience might be upset that two characters broke up, for instance, them doing so only encourages the viewers to continue watching the show. I later remembered this teaching when the cohort heard from journalist Matti Friedman who spoke extensively about how Israel is portrayed in the media and how the number of reporters who cover Israel is far higher compared to other areas of the world. As I sat in our session with Friedman I continued to recall Shapiro’s concept of conflict and how the media pushes the narrative of conflict in Israel because it attracts readers to the story, though in reality the friction is not as extreme as it appears. Ultimately, through Shapiro’s teaching, it is evident that conflict drives stories both in fictional stories and in real life.
For our coming months together in Nachshon, I know I will continually look back fondly on the chance we had to speak with Laizy Shapiro both as an opportunity that allowed us fellows to bond as well as learn several lessons that we can carry forward.
