Slingshot Hip Hop

2007. USA. Directed by Jackie Reem Salloum. While America's image abroad has been battered of late, its music remains a unifying force in global culture. New York filmmaker Jackie Reem Salloum's first feature documentary on Palestinian rap, is an exuberant mix of live-action and animation. Beginning in Lyd, Israel, where Tamer Nafar heard Tupac Shakur and, influenced by Shakur's protest lyrics and fierce rhythms, formed DAM, the first Palestinian hip hop group, the filmmaker travels to West Bank communities and to Gaza to record what, in spite of poverty and military checkpoints, DAM hath wrought. That includes PR (Palestinian Rapperz), whose members hope someday to meet fellow rappers outside the confinements of Gaza; and the female rapper Abeer and the group Arapeyat, who are redefining gender roles in their societies. Slingshot Hip Hop is a rousing testament to the power of music and the aspirations of youth. 89 min.