Back in the summer of 2006, it was the first press conference of its kind ever. Jerusalem’s Jewish, Muslim and Christian religious leaders actually joined forces to address the media. The topic they addressed wasn’t unity, love or peace. Their united stance was in total condemnation of the World Pride March, which was set to take place in Jerusalem in August that year.

“This is the holy land, not the homo land!” they expressed, quite proud of their verbal pun. “God created Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve!”

You’d be forgiven for laughing. But you wouldn’t be laughing long. It’s soon apparent that their messages of hate towards homosexuals translates into serious bloodshed and violence.

It’s the opening scene of extraordinary documentary Jerusalem Is Proud To Present, by Israeli documentary film maker Nitzan Gilady [pictures 2 and 3], a film which was a late addition to the Mardi Gras Film Festival this year and is set to feature in the 2009 Melbourne Queer Film Festival.

Australia just celebrated its biggest Mardi Gras ever and Gilady was there right in the thick of the action. He marched alongside Australian Olympic Gold Medalist and chief of the parade, Matthew Mitcham. It was the first time Gilady had ever really participated in a gay pride march, when he wasn’t filming or working.

“It was an amazing experience… a wonderful feeling. There was so much love , positive energy, colour and celebration. The crowd actually cheered us on!” exclaims Gilady. “That feeling of pride for me was life changing. It’s almost hard to describe how special it is to celebrate sexuality and freedom.”

Gilady came out quite late in life. At 35, the documentary film maker has only been out for four years. This isn’t his first visit to Australia. In fact he has been here four times already, although his visit to Melbourne for the screening of his film will be a first. Gilady’s 2003 documentary In Satmar Custody recently screened on SBS, but Jerusalem Is Proud To Present is his first gay themed documentary, and one that documents the current political climate in Jerusalem.

“I had only been out for a year when the idea for the Jerusalem Pride documentary came about. My producer Galia Bador pointed out an advert for World Pride in Jerusalem. Knowing what we did about the city, we ourselves wondered how it was going to happen. While it is definitely not a film about me personally, I was asking and exploring a lot of the same issues about politics, sexuality and religion and how they all fit into one’s life. We knew this documentary had to be made,” he explains.

As we head into a new golden era of political, social and legal recognition in Australia, queer people have never been so visible and free. It’s a far cry from the situation in Jerusalem documented by Gilady. In Australia, discussions rage on about whether or not Mardi Gras is relevant in our current society, or whether it’s too commercial. In Jerusalem, the simple act of organising a pride march, or even just marching, could lead to your death. In the documentary the viewer witnesses firsthand the opinions of gay opponents, as well as real life threats, violence and terrorism. From bomb threats to stabbings during the parade, to a truly chilling moment when a group of men surround a gay activist and the film crew in their car and attempt to kill them.

The documentary’s brutal reality and beautiful honesty is simultaneously captivating and terrifying. It will make you consider how truly lucky we are to have any kind of freedom at all. Not just to have a march that is a political protest for freedom, but one that is a vibrant celebration of sexuality. Something that cannot even be dreamt of in many parts of the world, even today.

“Jersuleam is an extreme environment politically and socially. So many warring factions. No matter what you’re trying to organise, and I’m not just talking about gay stuff here… Something is going to happen to interfere with it. Your event will get delayed and cancelled. It’s just life there. So you can imagine how much more of a struggle it was to arrange a gay pride march when it upsets so many people.”

The key ingredient that makes Gilady’s film so powerful and moving is that he bravely shows opposing sides without censorship. And he does it from the outset. Jerusalem Is Proud To Present isn’t just all about the political, social and religious perspectives. It also gives us an insight into the very human side of gay life in Israel.

“Presenting all sides of the argument was vital to me,” says Gilady. “Make no mistake, there is a lot of passion on both sides. The people you see really believe in what they are fighting for. To show just the gay perspective would not have really given you the context of the extreme opinions and aggression that they are battling against. I wish the opponents of gays didn’t believe what they do, and play so viciously. When you see the full picture, you realise how dangerous the battle is that everyone is fighting.”

After many delays and cancellations, Jerusalem Pride finally went ahead after Open House – the group that organised the gay march – won a court battle against political and spiritual leaders, that allowed it to go ahead. The march was just 550 metres, but over 4000 people participated. They were escorted by over 700 uniformed police in full riot gear.

Jerusalem Is Proud To Present took out the Best Documentary award at LA Outfest, which is considered to be the biggest and best queer film festival in the world. I asked Gilady, what an award like that means to him.

“When I set out to make a film, the thought of awards are the furthest thing on my mind. All I care about is telling a story well and honestly, and as passionately as I can. But I have to say, to get that kind of recognition by the biggest queer film festival in the world is such a thrill. To know you connected with people, and that you did the story justice… it’s a great feeling. It is a sharp contrast… the feeling of being amongst the violence where you are cursed and spat upon, and the wonderful positivity of standing on that stage and raising international awareness about the situation in Jerusalem while accepting and award.”

Jerusalem is Proud To Present will screen at the Melbourne Queer Film festival 2009 at ACMI Cinemas, Federation Square, on Tuesday 24th March at 6pm. To buy your tickets, click here.

Check out Same Same’s picks of the Melbourne Queer Film Festival by clicking here.