VISION KINO recommends “Coexistence, My Ass!” as a film tip.
The non-profit organization VISION KINO promotes film and media literacy among children and young people throughout Germany. It is supported by the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media, the German Federal Film Board, the Deutsche Kinemathek Foundation, and the “Kino macht Schule” initiative, which is backed by leading associations in the film distribution and cinema industry. Its key projects include the nationwide SchulKinoWochen (School Cinema Weeks) – Germany’s largest film education project – training courses for teachers, educational support materials, and curated film tips for teaching. The aim is to establish film as an integral part of cultural youth education, to strengthen young people’s film literacy in the long term, and at the same time to promote the cinema as the original cultural and experiential venue for film.
In its latest film recommendations, VISION KINO recommends the documentary “Coexistence, My Ass!” by Amber Fares, currently distributed by UCM.ONE in cinemas in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, for media education work. The film portrays Israeli comedian and activist Noam Shuster Eliassi, who is accompanied over several years as she develops her stage program. Based on her biography in a Jewish-Arab community, the film highlights the structural tensions of the Middle East conflict and asks fundamental questions about “who is allowed to speak, who listens” and how political reality and public perception are intertwined.
In its film tip, VISION KINO highlights the thematic links “coexistence, identity, Israel/Palestine, political satire, resistance, multilingualism, censorship” and recommends the film “from grade 11” or “from age 16”. This explicitly classifies “Coexistence, My Ass!” as suitable for in-depth school discussions on democratic public life, social polarization, and forms of artistic intervention. At the same time, the recommendation refers to the film’s cinematic design and the combination of long-term documentary observation with performative stand-up elements, which enable an analytical examination of perspective, montage, and public speech in the classroom.
“Coexistence, My Ass!” (95 min., rated: 12) has been distributed by UCM.ONE since February 5, 2025, and can be seen in cinemas in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Its inclusion in the film tips of VISION KINO underscores the film’s particular relevance for educational work in schools and outside of school.
Current Showtimes can be found here:
Synopsis
“Coexistence, My Ass!” follows Israeli activist and comedian Noam Shuster Eliassi as she creates her comedy show of the same name. The documentary, which was filmed over a period of five turbulent years, traces Noam’s personal, professional, and political career against the backdrop of the steadily deteriorating situation in the region.
Raised in the bilingual Israeli-Palestinian village of Wahat al-Salam – Neve Shalom (Oasis of Peace), a deliberately integrated community, Noam increasingly loses faith in traditional peace activism. She turns to stand-up comedy and quickly gains attention throughout the Middle East. But as her star rises, everything around her collapses.
With biting satire, Noam confronts her audience with difficult truths that are not always funny, but remind us that another reality is possible.
Film Talk: Amber Fares and Rachel Leah Jones in conversation with Christoph Terhechte
In our film talk for the theatrical release, film critic Christoph Terhechte (festival director of DOK Leipzig until January 31, 2026; previously director of the Berlinale Forum) talks to Amber Fares and Rachel Leah Jones about “Coexistence, My Ass!” – and how Noam Shuster Eliassi as the protagonist and her comedy carry a film that has been maturing for five years and will have to find new words after October 7, 2023. Fares describes how, as a long-time acquaintance, she began filming Noam at Harvard as she developed her one-woman show, without a finished dramaturgical plan; Jones describes the close on-site collaboration, the constant refinement of context and comprehensibility, and the strength of a diverse team spanning languages and perspectives. One thing is clear: the film dispenses with talking heads and turns Noam’s stage into a narrative machine – self-questioning, commentary, safe space and risk all at once. The radical nature of this principle is evident in the escalation of the present: comedy here is not an escape, but a method of keeping contradictions visible.
Further information about the film: Coexistence, my Ass!
Further information about the film label: NONFY Documentaries
