The US, to Israel, and back to the US again. Dana Schneider’s experience as a mixed Yemenite, Ashkenazi, Israeli, Jewish woman exposed her to the multiculturalism of both the Jewish people, and Israeli society, essentially from birth.
Dana was born in New York to a Yemenite-Israeli mother and an Ashkenazi-American father, and then moved to Israel as an infant. To her dismay, Dana’s parents decided to move their family back to the United States when she was five. Even at this young age, Dana felt the difference between the monolithic Jewish culture of the American diaspora and the multicultural mosaic she had experienced in Israel. With the dominant culture in the American Jewish community being very Ashkenazi, Dana found it hard to connect. Many of her peers knew little-to-nothing about Mizrahi Jews.
As was always her plan, Dana moved back to Israel the minute she graduated high school. It was there that she studied Visual Communications at the Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) Herzliya and was given the opportunity to produce and co-direct a music video for Israeli-Moroccan musician Jasmine Muallem. This was her first adventure into the powerful medium of film as a vehicle to showcase culture and tell stories.
Fast forward to today, Dana has now embarked on her most recent project – Nice Jewish Girl – a short film about what it means to not fit in—as a woman, and as a Jewish person of Middle Eastern descent. The project shines a light onto the obstacles Mizrahi Jews face in the diaspora, including how society attempts to question and define their identity. The story aims to expand the Jewish narrative, which can often be portrayed as a monolith in popular media.
With comedic elements and an edgy, cinematic visual language, Nice Jewish Girl follows the story of Danielle, a young, struggling actress in NYC. As a woman of Yemeni-Jewish descent, she can’t seem to find her niche, and doesn’t fit under any neat labels—least of all the stereotype of the typical “nice (white) Jewish girl.” This dissonance leads to friction in her daily interactions, challenging her to ultimately question the entire trajectory of her life.
Currently, the project is in its most preliminary stages. Nice Jewish Girl is scheduled to launch a fundraising campaign with a night of Yemenite culture on September 5th at the Moxy in Brooklyn.
And this is just the beginning. Dana’s plan is for the film to serve as a proof of concept for an entire television series. Throughout the proposed series Danielle, the main character, will encounter an array of characters of various identities, backgrounds, and experiences. The show would explore the complexities and identities of Israel (both Jewish and non-Jewish), the importance of being curious about those different than oneself, and the necessity to branch out from one’s echo chamber.
“My dream is a writers’ room full of the diversity of Israeli society, even those I don’t necessarily agree with. Like a microcosm of Israeli society in the writers’ room, and with a mutual respect and desire to understand each other’s differences.”
Ultimately, filmmaker Dana Schneider is here to diversify the narrative of who Jews are, encourage viewers to consider identity in new ways, and get comfortable with being uncomfortable.
“The way you define your identity in one place isn’t necessarily the way you do in another place, it is relative to where you are, both in the way you see yourself and how society sees you.”
You can learn more about Nice Jewish Girl and how you can support the project on Dana’s website. And if you’re in the New York Area, don’t miss an incredible night of Yemenite culture at the project’s launch event on September 5th at the Moxy in Brooklyn.
