Think Out Loud Documentary ”Holding Liat” focuses on a Jewish family’s struggles after October 7
Feb 24, 2026
Joel Beinin, former Stanford Middle East history professor and uncle of Liat, offers personal and historical perspective. Lance Kramer, film producer, explains making intimate documentaries. They discuss filming a family's real-time struggle after October 7, ethical choices around consent and access, generational tensions over trauma, and the challenges of documenting reunions and uncertainty.
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Family Filmmakers Navigated Intimacy And Consent
- Lance Kramer and his brother Brandon filmed their own extended family through the hostage crisis while balancing roles as family members and filmmakers.
- They promised all family members pre-release viewing and used that consent to enter intimate, vulnerable moments without causing surprise or harm.
Documentary Intends To Restore Nuanced Family Perspectives
- The filmmakers aimed to document the lived experience of hostage families to counter simplified public narratives about Israelis and Palestinians.
- They saw omission and reduction in media coverage as an added stress on people directly impacted by the crisis.
Uncle Left Israel After Opposing Militarism
- Joel Beinin described leaving Israel in the early 1970s after political activism and opposition to militarism made him unwilling to serve in the army.
- His family long belonged to a left-leaning movement favoring binational accommodation, shaping his and his siblings' politics.