The screenwriter of SHALOM CITY & THE WANDERING JEW - Beau Lee - has a unique angle on the film’s subject matter.

AN OUTSIDER. Lee is an outsider to the insular Ultra-Orthodox community, yet he’s been blessed to have a deep, long look in. As an outsider in particular, Lee is well-positioned to write a script that explains the basics of the mysterious inner workings of the Chasidim to the outsiders in a way that is both entertaining, enlightening, and fair. He bridges the gap.

DOGMA REBELLION. In the film’s story, Ya’akov leaves the Lubavitcher sect in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. He rejects it all — the dogma, the antisemitism that comes with being Jewish, and even Jewishness itself. Lee grew up in a Charismatic-Pentecostal sect of Christianity and was eventually obligated to leave much of the teachings he was brought up in. Such paradigm shifting is an uncomfortable process, and the writer know this reality just as Ya’akov does.

ROCK MUSIC. Lee was front man for a touring rock band through his 20s. During this time, he learned the importance of having emotional dynamics in a set of songs for a performance, as well as dynamics within an individual song. Emotional peaks and valleys maintain human interest. This lesson is brought to the emotional dynamics of the Shalom City film.

TANAKH UNDERSTANDING. One can’t understand Jewishness without knowing the Hebrew Scriptures. Jewish understanding of identity, culture, and purpose comes largely from the Torah. Additionally, what is to become of the Jews in the future is foretold in the Jewish prophetic writings of the TaNaKh. As a doctoral candidate at the renowned Talbot School of Theology and a serious student of the biblical text, Lee has deep knowledge of the Torah and the expanded text of the TaNaKh. Lee brings all this depth into the Shalom City story.

JEWISH CULTURE. Lee has also studied operational Jewish culture for more than two decades. Learning to read biblical and modern Hebrew, leading tours to Israel for years, and living between the famous Satmar and Lubavitcher Ultra-Orthodox sects in Brooklyn for nearly a decade, Lee has come to understand many of the real-world cultural nuances, including them in the film as a thoughtful outsider.

TWO WORLDS. Being so close to both the Christian and Jewish communities, Lee has heard the questions raised by Gentiles and Jews alike. “What is this Jewish thing about?” “Why is the blessedness mixed with all the suffering?” “If there is a God, has He given up on the Jews?” The film seeks out answers to these difficult questions.

The Jewish people and their land in Israel are perpetually on the front pages of our news sites all around the world. The nations are watching. SHALOM CITY & THE WANDERING JEW is a film that is ready to capture the attention of lovers and haters alike. Nobody will get to The End unchallenged and unchanged.