Coexistence, My Ass – Hot Docs 2025
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April 24 to May 4, 2025
Content Advisory: Racism
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Israeli comedian and activist Noam Shuster Eliassi uses the Israel-Palestine conflict as the basis for her one woman show in Coexistence, My Ass. Noam Shuster Eliassi is a Jewish woman of Romanian and Persian descent who grew up in the Israeli village of Neve Shalom, or the Oasis of Peace, where Jews and Arabs live together peacefully. Initially an activist for the United Nations, campaigning for peace between Israel and Palestine, Noam Shuster Eliassi would begin transitioning into comedy and developing a standup show about coexistence. However, following the events of October 7, Eliassi’s political beliefs would begin making her viewed as an enemy by her people.
Coexistence, My Ass Synopsis
Coexistence, My Ass is a documentary directed by Amber Fares, taking on the same name as the one-woman standup show performed by activist and comedian Noam Shuster Eliassi. The standup set is used in the film as a framing device to tell the story of five tumultuous years in Eliassi’s life. Beginning in 2019, as she is writing the show at Harvard University, Noam Shuster Eliassi has to deal with both the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and increased tensions between Israel and Palestine following October 7. Growing up half Persian with Palestinian friends, Eliassi is deeply sympathetic to the plight of the Palestinians, which results in her being called an Enemy of Israel.
My Thoughts on Coexistence, My Ass
At one points in Coexistence, My Ass, Noam Shuster Eliassi describes comedy as being a way to bring together. Indeed, one of the main goals of this film seems to be about comparing and contrasting Eliassi’s standup show with her political activism. While part of me would have liked to have seen the comedy show on its own without the documentary portions, Coexistence, My Ass is still successful at giving Noam Shuster Eliassi’s very unique perspective on the Israel/Palestine conflict.
