26-03-2025
The controversies plaguing Oscar-winning documentary ‘No Other Land,' explained
As the reigning Oscar winner for Best Documentary Feature, No Other Land and its quartet of filmmakers — Yuval Abraham, Hamdan Ballal,Basel Adra, and Rachel Szor — should be taking a victory lap. In other years with other documentaries, there would be the traditional theatrical boost, promotional appearances, and high-profile follow-up opportunities.
But that's not the case with No Other Land. The film and its directors have been unable to fully enjoy the fruits of their Academy Award victory. Here's a brief look at everything that has gone wrong.
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No Other Land chronicles a developing alliance between Adra, a Palestinian activist, and Abraham, an Israeli journalist. They collaborate to show the destruction of the occupied West Bank's Masafer Yatta by Israeli soldiers. The film became an immediate sensation on the international scene, winning the Best Documentary prize at last year's Berlin Film Festival. It went on to score top honors from the International Documentary Association, Cinema Eye Honors, Gothams, and the National Society of Film Critics; in all, the film receieved more than 60 awards. Despite near-universal praise, the film was deemed too politically charged to secure a U.S. distribution deal.
Earlier this year, the directors worked with Cinetic Media to facilitate their own theater bookings via Michael Tuckman Media. Following showings in New York and Los Angeles, No Other Land expanded to more than 20 theaters nationwide. The early success allowed them to self-distribute even further — and it went on to become the top-grossing documentary from this year's Oscar lineup with domestic box-office receipts totaling $1.7 million. The filmmakers weren't surprised by its success.
"Well, the film has distribution all over the world, and there's a really big demand for it in the United States, so you would expect a big distributor to jump on board," Abraham told Variety in December. "The film is very, very critical of Israeli policies. As an Israeli I think that's a really good thing, because we need to be critical of these policies so they can change. But I think the conversation in the United States appears to be far less nuanced — there is much less space for this kind of criticism, even when it comes in the form of a film."
Even without U.S. distribution, the film completed its run to Oscar, claiming the top prize on March 2 in a field that also included Black Box Diaries, Porcelain War, Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat, and Sugarcane. During their acceptance speech, Adra and Abraham blasted the "atrocious destruction of Gaza" and U.S. policies "helping to block" the freedom of Palestine.
"Two months ago I became a father and my hope is my daughter will not have to live the the same life I'm living now — always fearing home demolitions and forced displacements that my community, Masafer Yatta, is facing every day," Adra said during their acceptance speech. "No Other Land portrays the harsh reality that we have been enduring for decades and still resist. We call on the world to stop the injustice and to stop the ethnic cleansing of Palestinian people."
Abraham added, "We made this film, Palestinians and Israelis, because together our voices are stronger. We see each other — the atrocious destruction of Gaza and its people, which must end. The Israeli hostages, brutally taken on Oct. 7, who must be freed. When I look at Basel, I see my brother, but we are unequal. We live in a regime where I am free under civilian law. Basel is under military law that destroys his life and he cannot control it. There is a different path, a political solution ... with national rights for both of our people. I have to say, as I am here, the foreign policy in this country is helping to block this path. Why? Can't you see that we are intertwined? My people can be truly safe if Basel's people are truly free. There is another way. It's not too late for life for the living. There is no other way."
On March 12, Miami Beach Mayor Steven Meiner issued a draft resolution calling for the termination of a lease between the city and O Cinema, a theater located at the city-owned Old City Hall. Meiner was outraged that the theater had screened No Other Land. 'I watched the film,' he wrote in a newsletter to constituents that described the documentary as 'a false one-sided propaganda attack on the Jewish people that is not consistent with the values of our City and residents. .. I am a staunch believer in free speech. But normalizing hate and then disseminating antisemitism in a facility owned by the taxpayers of Miami Beach … is unjust to the values of our city and residents and should not be tolerated.'
In a statement, Vivian Marthell the CEO of O Cinema said, 'Our decision to screen No Other Land is not a declaration of political alignment. It is a bold reaffirmation of our fundamental belief that every voice deserves to be heard. The ability to present diverse perspectives without fear of political retribution is the cornerstone of a free and democratic society. Efforts to pressure or censor artistic expression set a dangerous precedent that threatens the creative and intellectual freedoms of all.' She threatened to sue the city should any action be taken.
Abraham, meanwhile, denounced Meiner's attempt to shut down the theater.
On March 19, the day the issue was set to be addressed at the city commission meeting, Meiner withdrew his petition after five of six commissioners said they did not condone the action.
In a post on X on Monday, Abraham announced that Ballal, a Palestinian, was ambushed near his home in the West Bank. "They beat him and he has injuries in his head and stomach, bleeding. [Israeli] Soldiers invaded the ambulance he called, and took him. No sign of him since." Jihad Nawajaa, head of the Susiya local council, told Reuters that a group of settlers attacked the Susiya village during a gathering for Iftar, the end of the daily Ramadan fast, on Monday. Ballal, who was injured, was one of three men who were arrested. Ballal's wife Lamia Balall later said, "The settlers attacked him and started beating him, and then they arrested him, we do not know anything about him."
Ballal was released a day later, Abraham said on X. "After being handcuffed all night and beaten in a military base, Hamdan Ballal is now free and is about to go home to his family," he wrote.
In a new post on X Wednesday, Abraham went after the Motion Picture Academy for failing to speak out against the attack on Ballal.
'Sadly, the U.S. Academy, which awarded us an Oscar three weeks ago, declined to publicly support Hamdan Ballal while he was beaten and tortured by Israeli soldiers and settlers. The European Academy voiced support, as did countless other award groups and festivals. Several U.S. Academy members — especially in the documentary branch — pushed for a statement, but it was ultimately refused. We were told that because other Palestinians were beaten up in the settler attack, it could be considered unrelated to the film, so they felt no need to respond.'
'All my body is pain,' Ballal told the Associated Press. 'I heard the voices of the soldiers, they were laughing about me… I heard 'Oscar' but I didn't speak Hebrew.'
"While Hamdan was clearly targeted for making No Other Land," Abraham continued in his tweet, "he was also targeted for being Palestinian — like countless others every day who are disregarded. This, it seems, gave the Academy an excuse to remain silent when a filmmaker they honored, living under Israeli occupation, needed them the most. It's not too late to change this stance. Even now, issuing a statement condemning the attack on Hamdan and the Masafer Yatta community would send a meaningful message and serve as a deterrent for the future."
Even after winning the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature, No Other Land remains difficult to watch in the U.S. Just a handful of indie theaters, like O Cinema, are exhibiting the film. The doc was declined by all major streamers and is only available digitally on the film's official website, which is only accessible to stream for free within Israel-Palestine. Per Stylecaster, "if you want to watch No Other Land in the U.S., American viewers will need a VPN (virtual private network), which is a service that allows users to set their computer's location to another country and access websites that would otherwise be restricted by location."
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