The Diary of a Video Editor - Testimonies from October 7th
Psychoanalytic Perspectives on Documenting October 7th: A Video Editor Bearing Witness , due out on March 2027, is a journey into the wounded heart of Israeli society following October 7th. Rony Alfandary, a clinical social worker, researcher, and video editor for the Edut 710 (Testimony 710) project, for which he edited 137 testimonies from 28 communities in the Western Negev, details in this book his experiences as an active witness to the harrowing events of the ongoing war. The book reveals how Holocaust memory was reawakened when the domestic sphere turned into a killing ground and uses psychoanalytic and hermeneutics methodology to analyze the collapse of the national ethos. Beyond being a documentary and therapeutic work, it serves as an ethical and existential guide for documenting and preserving subjectivity as a tangible act of resistance against forgetting. This is a must-read for anyone seeking to understand the path toward building personal and social resilience, processing trauma, and healing. Accessible to the general public while providing a vital conceptual framework for clinicians and researchers, this book is a deeply ethical exploration of memory, civic engagement, and human connection in the aftermath of catastrophe.
About the Author
Rony Alfandary, Ph.D., is a clinical social worker and lecturer at the School of Social Work at the University of Haifa.
His research interests are multidisciplinary, encompassing photography, hermeneutics, psychoanalysis, the relationships between language, creativity, and the sense of self and belonging, as well as the impact of the Holocaust on second and third generations.
Rony is also a practicing photographer and video editor, with a diverse portfolio spanning theatre, disability, street photography, and documentary work. He has published two volumes of poetry (2004 and 2023) and two novels (2000 and 2022), all in Hebrew, as well as numerous clinical essays and several books of non-fiction. This is his 15th book.
He is an active photographer and documentary film maker.
More can be seen on his website www.ronyalfandary.com
Cover: "We Shall Dance Again" by Edith Reisner Alfandary
"Rony Alfandary’s book is a rare and profound document that transcends traditional storytelling.
Centered on eight harrowing testimonies from the "Edut 710" project, it explores not merely what is recounted about the tragedies of October 7th, but how trauma is shared and witnessed.
Drawing on his unique expertise as a clinical social worker and video editor, Alfandary navigates the intricate relationships between survivor, interviewer, and the camera. He illuminates the editing process as a deeply moral act of "listening as a generative action",one that restores connection, empathy, and presence in the face of unimaginable pain.
Brilliantly written, this work seamlessly integrates sharp intellectual insights with uncompromising emotional depth. It serves as a vital window into Israeli society's confrontation with memory and trauma, proving that true witnessing is never passive, but a profoundly active and moral response to suffering."
Dr. Boaz Shalgi, Clinical Psychologist, Lecturer in the Psychotherapy Program at the Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University; Editor-in-Chief of the journal Sichot: Israel Journal of Psychotherapy; Chief Psychologist of the NATAL organization.
"Rony Alfandary’s profound new book firmly resists the absorption of October 7th into a fleeting narrative, demanding we confront the cognitive rupture that altered our very experience of time.
Alfandary navigates the depths of trauma with immense ethical and emotional clarity. He courageously confronts the linguistic paralysis of disaster, challenging the notion that there are "no words" for horror. Instead, he emphasizes the ethical imperative of using language, however fractured, as a powerful act of psychological and civic resistance.
Delving into the complex dynamics of testimony, the moral responsibility of editing, and the "postmemory" that reactivates historical traumas, Alfandary expertly deconstructs both the spoken and the unsaid. Rejecting simplistic narratives of rapid recovery, he offers a poignant testament to the power of daily, modest action, listening, articulating, and remembering, forging a renewed sense of agency amidst enduring vulnerability."
Dr. Ilan Sharif, Director of the Loss and Bereavement Domain at the Ministry of Welfare and Social Affairs, Lecturer at Sapir Academic College and the Academic College of Tel Aviv-Yaffo.
"A work of rare profundity, courage, and integrity, Alfandary’s book is an exceptionally important contribution to our understanding of trauma and memory.
He navigates complex stances, as clinician, observer, and introspective witness, with remarkable vulnerability and unwavering ethical grace.
Through a rich multiplicity of voices spanning diverse sectors, genders, and ages, the book powerfully frames these events not merely as a compilation of private grief, but as a profound collective trauma. Immensely valuable and deeply empathetic, this is an essential read for both professionals and the general public, a courageous testament to the absolute necessity of bearing witness."
Prof. [Emeritus] Mooli Lahad, Medical Psychologist – Supervisor and Founding President of the Mashabim Center, Kiryat Shmona.
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