AWAKE ZION - ABOUT

Awake Zion is a documentary that explores the unsuspecting connections between Rasta, Reggae, and Judaism, through one woman's beat-laden adventure into the meaning of identity.

Consider that one of the first reggae songs ever broadcast on radio was called "Israelites" - or that Rastas and Orthodox Jews take cues from identical passages of the bible on matters of faith, prayer, and dietary and sexual ethics. Most notable, however, is the ever-present theme of "Zion" that runs deeply in both cultures - the notion of a common longing for repatriation - be it to a spiritual, or physical, homeland.

Unravelling the story of this unlikely kinship, Awake Zion unites Jewish and Jamaican musicians, scholars, and historians in a celebration roots and culture - traveling from Crown Heights, Brooklyn, where Caribbean and Jewish cultures share a history of adversity - to Jamaica, the birthplace of reggae - and ultimately to Israel, where a sizzling reggae scene thrives today.

Awake Zion examines the preconceptions of what it means to be Jewish, what it means to be Rasta, what it means to be white or black - and, most importantly, the universal search for what it means to be "home".

The infamous Crown Heights race riots in the summer of '91 set the tone for an urban battleground between Jewish and Black communities - the fallout from which is still felt in this historically diverse neighborhood to this day.

Out of this tinderbox, however, emerged a vibrant and unique reggae music scene - a curious cultural hybrid of Rasta and Jewish influences - the most notable example being the platinum-selling Matisyahu. All of which begs the question: What gives?

For Monica Haim, however - a Jewish kid in yeshiva growing up listening to reggae music - the irony of Blacks and Jews at such odds with one another did not fall on deaf ears. Maybe it was the mention of Moses, Samson, Elijah, Solomon and David all in a single verse of a Steel Pulse song; or the African reggae group Alpha Blondy praising Jerusalem and singing in Hebrew; or the Mad Professor, London Dub genius from the 70s, and his album "The Lost Scrolls of Moses", with tracks entitled "Dub on Mount Sinai", "African Hebrew Chant" and "Dead Sea Scrolls"...

In Haim, reggae music ignited something that went far beyond the melodies and beats. Her experience with Rasta and reggae gave rise to a discovery of shared histories and common beliefs - and an unexpected doorway towards connecting with her own Jewish roots.

All the way back to the alleged sultry affair between the Jewish King Solomon and the African Queen of Sheba, Jewish influence is evident in the spiritual history of Ethiopia - turning up subtly in Rastafarian lifestyle and then, inevitably, in reggae. Consider that one of the first reggae songs ever broadcast on radio was called "Israelites" - or that Rastas and Orthodox Jews take cues from identical passages of the bible on matters of faith, prayer, and dietary and sexual ethics. Most notable, however, is the ever-present theme of "Zion" that runs deeply in both cultures - the notion of a common longing for repatriation - be it to a spiritual, or physical, homeland.

Having continually run across these common histories of dispersion, bondage, persecution and emancipation - and sensing an undeniable point of convergence between these two worlds - Haim set out to explore these connections through the bridge of music. Chronicling the story of this unlikely kinship, Awake Zion unites Jewish and Jamaican musicians, scholars, and historians in a celebration roots and culture-- a beat-laden adventure that kicks off in Brooklyn; travels to Jamaica, the birthplace of reggae; and culminates in Israel, where a sizzling reggae scene thrives today.

Awake Zion is a deeply personal examination of what it means to be Jewish, what it means to be Rasta, what it means to be white or black - and, most importantly, the universal search for what it means to be "home".