Urgent and unflinching, TORN captures the symbolic street battle that erupted in New York City after Hamas’s October 7 attacks, when “KIDNAPPED” hostage posters blanketed the city. What began as a desperate grassroots campaign for visibility quickly became a cultural flashpoint—sparking confrontations between pro-Israel and pro-Palestine activists and exposing how a distant war tore open the social fabric of America’s most diverse city. 

Through the voices of artists, activists, students, rabbis, and hostage families, TORN reveals the human stakes of a proxy war fought not with weapons, but with tape, slogans, and torn paper. It is a raw portrait of how grief, rage, and ideology collide in public space — and a meditation on what happens when empathy itself becomes contested territory.

Directed and produced by Nim Shapira (2025, 75 min., Not Rated) 

Featuring a post-screening discussion with TORN Project artist Susan Lerner and additional special guests. 

“Timely, powerful, and thought-provoking.” — Forbes

Nim Shapira is a filmmaker, creative director, and founder of Metallux Studio, a Brooklyn-based concept and production house dedicated to empathy-driven storytelling. An MIT Open Documentary Lab fellow and Venice Biennale College Cinema alumnus, Shapira’s work has appeared at TED, Tribeca, Slamdance, SIGGRAPH, and Cannes. TORN marks his feature debut.