In Bnei Brak, Israel’s largest ultra-Orthodox city, Miki Chayat is trying to lead an unlikely revolution to transform his community. Chayat’s story, Rabbi Capoeira, is screening Thursday at the Barry Family Campus Minnesota JCC as part of the Twin Cities Jewish Film Festival, and it tells the tale of the Mediterranean champion of the Brazilian martial art Capoeira, and a proud Ultra-Orthodox Jew whose life was transformed.
“It saved my life,” said Chayat, who describes capoeira as a kind of martial art that is hidden in dance. “I decided to bring this magic to my community to help others overcome the struggles that I had.”
Capoeira combines dance, acrobatics, and music. Chayat’s organization, the Stronger Association, gives at-risk youth from Israel’s Haredi community a lifeline out of cycles of risk, drugs, and violence. Through capoeira training at his studio in Bnei Brak, mentorship, and education, Chayat and his team offer young people a chance to build discipline, confidence, and purpose, while promoting coexistence across Israel’s cultural and religious divides. Chayat says it also gives Haredi youth an outlet to express themselves through movement and cope with some of the difficulties of growing up in an isolated community.
Shot over the course of five years, the film follows Chayat’s journey to bring capoeira into a community that often resists such outside influences. The uphill battle to convince the traditionally strict community of Bnei Brak to accept his studio, is a story that he and the filmmakers felt is worth telling. Alongside his collaborator, Revital Ben Moshe, a trailblazing, ultra-Orthodox woman with her own powerful story, Chayat faces fierce opposition, unexpected obstacles, and moments of doubt. What emerges is a testament to faith, perseverance, and the courage to lead change even when there’s no guidebook.
“It’s about struggling. It’s about faith,” Chayat explained. “It’s about how to keep believing in what you’re doing and how to go against the stream.”
Despite skepticism, Chayat’s vision has taken root. His students, many of them once considered at-risk, now compete on international stages. Recently, a team from the Stronger Association, took fourth place at the World Games. And while his students affectionately call him “Rabbi,” Chayat laughs when asked about the nickname. “I’m not actually a rabbi,” he said, “but maybe I teach in a different kind of way.”
For Chayat, the lessons of Capoeira go far beyond kicks and cartwheels. “One is hope,” he said. “It’s important for people to have hope. And secondly, to be proactive. If you see something that’s wrong, go do something about it. Don’t leave the job for others, because there are no others.”
That spirit of action, and the deep belief that transformation is possible even in the most insular
places, lies at the heart of Rabbi Capoeira. The film captures not only the trials and tribulations of a nonprofit with no playbook, but the human story of what it means to build bridges, take risks, and keep fighting for good.
The film is co-sponsored by the Israel Center of the Minneapolis Jewish Federation and YJP Minneapolis – Chabad’s Young Jewish Professionals. A post-screening conversation with Miki Chayat and MJF’s Noa Rosenzweig will follow the film, offering Twin Cities audiences a rare chance to meet the man whose faith and fortitude are reshaping his community, one kick at a time.
Date: October 30
Time: 6:30 p.m.
Venue: Minnesota JCC Sabes Center – Minneapolis, Barry Family Campus
4330 S. Cedar Lake Road
St. Louis Park, MN 55416
Tickets: https://tcjff.eventive.org/schedule/rabbi-capoeira-68b2f5e1300c3b40482d0f82