Filmmaker Levi Hazen explores Oct. 7, antisemitism in 'Shadows of October' documentary

A new documentary by filmmaker Levi Hazen examines the global resurgence of antisemitism and competing narratives surrounding the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel through conversations with survivors, soldiers, Arab Israelis, pastors and others in Israel and on American university campuses.

For Hazen, the documentary is both an examination of those competing narratives and an expression of Christian solidarity with the Jewish people. The film explores the search for truth amid conflicting accounts of Oct. 7 and its aftermath while also confronting the question of where God is amid suffering.

Hazen believes the struggle over Israel extends beyond the battlefield, describing the contest over public opinion as another front in the conflict – one in which he believes Christians have an important responsibility.

“There's an eighth front,” he explains. "That eighth front is the battle over the narrative and the hearts and minds of the nations. And that is a front that the IDF or Mossad or no matter what the intelligence services of Israel, cannot win. It is a front that is going to have to be won, in my opinion, by the church at large.”

Hazen also views the persistence of antisemitism through a distinctly biblical lens. While acknowledging political and sociological factors, he argues that hatred directed toward Israel ultimately points to a deeper spiritual conflict.

“Antisemitism cannot simply be explained by using sociological or political arguments. Those are certainly important contributing lenses, but ultimately it just doesn't. The thing that does explain it is the Bible.”

Hazen’s commitment to Israel is deeply personal, despite not being Jewish himself. Years of visiting and living in Israel have shaped his perspective and strengthened his concern for the Jewish people.

“I'm about as Gentile as they come,” he says. “Born in the cornfields of Indiana. And yet God has placed on my heart a great love for the Jewish people.”

Yet the documentary is not simply an account of tragedy. Hazen also points to what he sees as hope in the biblical promises concerning Israel’s future and hopes the film will encourage both Christians and Jews to consider those promises more deeply.

“The Bible tells us that one day Israel's going to be restored not only to her land, but she's going to be regenerated to her God. And so there is hope for Israel.”

"Shadows of October: Israel Under Siege" offers viewers Hazen’s broader reflections on antisemitism, Israel, Christian responsibility, biblical prophecy and the search for truth amid a deeply contested narrative.