Until We Talk

Bassam Aramin, born in Sair near Hebron in 1969, was involved in the Palestinian resistance in his youth and spent seven years in an Israeli prison. There he began to question the logic of violence and seek alternative ways of resistance.

After his release, he founded the organization Combatants for Peace together with former enemies. In 2007, he lost his daughter Abir, who was shot dead by an Israeli soldier. This loss strengthened his resolve to continue on the path of nonviolent reconciliation.

Today, he is the Palestinian press spokesman for the Parents Circle.

Rami Elhanan, born in Jerusalem in 1949, is an Israeli graphic designer and peace activist. On September 4, 1997, he lost his thirteen-year-old daughter Smadar in a suicide bombing carried out by Palestinian attackers on Ben Yehuda Street in Jerusalem. The loss of his daughter led him to become involved in peace work. He joined the Parents Circle Families Forum, an organization that brings together Israelis and Palestinians who have lost close relatives in the conflict, and became committed to dialogue and reconciliation. In 2005, he met Bassam Aramin, whose daughter Abir was killed by an Israeli soldier two years later. Despite their different backgrounds, the two are united by their shared pain and desire to build bridges between their communities. Rami Elhanan is the former co-director of the Parents Circle and shares his story in numerous lectures and publications, including together with Bassam Aramin in Colum McCann’s bestselling novel Apeirogon, to promote understanding, compassion, and peace dialogue.

Arab Aramin was 14 when his sister Abir was shot dead three days before his birthday. She had given him fourteen gifts beforehand. “So you won’t forget me,” she said. The loss plunged Arab into deep despair. Out of anger, he began throwing stones at Israeli soldiers and thought about taking up arms himself.

A trip with his father Bassam to Germany, where he learned about the Holocaust and the fate of the Jewish population, changed his perspective. When Bassam told him he couldn’t bear the loss of a second child, Arab realized that violence was not the answer.

Today, he is committed to dialogue and reconciliation and has named his son after his father.

Yigal Elhanan was almost five years old when his sister Smadar was killed in a suicide bombing in Jerusalem shortly before his birthday. During the shiva, the seven-day mourning period, thousands of people flocked to the house. Yigal later recalled: “I thought they had all come for my birthday, but I wondered why Smadar wasn’t there.” The loss shaped his childhood.

Years later, he wanted to join the army, stand at the checkpoint and check Palestinians. Rami and especially his mother Nurit tried to dissuade him, but Yigal decided to go his own way and served three years in the Israeli army.

Today, he works with Arab at the Parents Circle summer camp, an initiative that brings Israeli and Palestinian youth together and promotes dialogue.

Florian Mebes studied TV journalism at the Film Academy in Ludwigsburg. After graduating, he lived in Israel for several years and reported for German newspapers, radio stations, and television stations. He focused on social issues that required intensive research. Shortly after the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, he was in Israel for ZDF and documented the oppressive mood immediately after the events.

Florian has also worked on several documentaries for ARD, ZDF, ARTE, UFA Pro7, and SRF/3Sat. He traveled to Ukraine several times to report on developments following the Russian invasion in February 2022 for German television stations. UNTIL WE TALK is his first feature-length documentary.

Filmography (selection)

Robin Scheller studied directing and animation at Middlesex University in London. After joining Markenfilm as a trainee, he worked there in various roles, finally as Head of Postproduction and Producer. During this time, he developed a passion for documentary film together with Florian Mebes. His work is characterized by a sensitive, observant eye. Filming in Israel and the West Bank deepened his understanding of people in exceptional situations and had a lasting influence on his professional and personal path. He attaches great importance to trust and respectful closeness to his protagonists. For him, authenticity arises when encounters unfold organically. He has been living and working in Berlin since 2022. With his company VideoKlub, he realizes commercial projects to enable independent documentary films.

Filmography (selection)

Philipp Petersson is a Swiss producer with Swedish roots and decades of experience in commercial production. After numerous award-winning productions in advertising, he turned his attention to character-driven documentaries and short films. In the early years, he worked on several projects, including the documentary series Inside Borussia Dortmund for Amazon and short films such as Chocolate Man and  Killing Karl. The short film Tala’vision received a Gold Student Academy Award in 2021. In addition to UNTIL WE TALK, Philipp Petersson is currently working on a film  about American rodeo and a mockumentary about an American patriot in Europe.

Filmography (selection)

Yoav Parish

Yoav Parish is co-producer and co-writer of UNTIL WE TALK and has been working in various roles in the film and television industry for over twenty years. He works as a director, writer, VFX artist, radio playwright, and producer. Over the course of his career, he has made a number of short films, commercials, and television productions. His most recent projects include rewriting the script for the historical docudrama Kopernikus and directing the fictional part of the production for NDR and Arte in Germany, which aired in 2023.

Filmography (selection)