From film’s Facebook page: Awake Zion is a documentary that reveals the unsuspecting links between Rasta, Reggae and Judaism, through a musical and spiritual sojourn exploring the meaning of identity.

Through one woman’s musical odyssey exploring the meaning of identity, Awake Zion is a documentary that explores the mysterious connections between Rasta, Reggae and Judaism. All the way back to the alleged sultry affair between King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, a certain blend of Jewish flavor has crept into the spiritual history of Ethiopia, turning up subtly in Rastafarian lifestyle, and then inevitably in reggae. Consider that one of the first reggae songs ever broadcast on radio was called “Israelites,” or that Rastas and Orthodox Jews share fundamental views towards faith, dietary and sexual ethics, and particularly the notion of repatriation.

Awake Zion brings together Jewish and Jamaican artists, scholars, and historians in a celebration of music, roots, and culture, on a personal journey that starts in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, where Caribbean and Jewish cultures have a history of adversity; to Jamaica, the birthplace of reggae, and ultimately to Israel, where a sizzling reggae scene thrives.

Through one woman’s musical odyssey exploring the meaning of identity, Awake Zion is a documentary that explores the mysterious connections between Rasta, Reggae and Judaism. All the way back to the alleged sultry affair between King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, a certain blend of Jewish flavor has crept into the spiritual history of Ethiopia, turning up subtly in Rastafarian lifestyle, and then inevitably in reggae. Consider that one of the first reggae songs ever broadcast on radio was… (read more)

Mission: Awake Zion aims to deconstruct what it means to be Jewish, what it means to be Rasta, what it means to be black or white, and to focus on the power of tolerance and open-mindedness in the face of one’s own roots. Everyone, with his/her own worldview, is forever chasing some kind of Zion—be it geographic, material or spiritual. Awake Zion reminds you that, despite the struggle to get there, you are somehow always home.

In photo above: dr. israel, matisyahu, sister carol, Monica Haim (photos), superdane, fire, Yossi Fine.