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Express Tribune
28-01-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
Palestinian films to open your eyes
SLOUGH, ENGLAND: With all the horror still unfolding in Gaza despite news of a ceasefire, there is only so much of a picture that mere newsprint can paint. Turn that picture over to the consummate hands of a filmmaker, however, and you will watch that very picture spin into a haunting true-to-life story you are unlikely to forget in a hurry. The beauty of film Conjuring up a gamut of emotions by piercing an arrow to the very humanity of the brutality shrouding the region – the loss of life, assault on dignity, and breakup of families – these Palestinian-centric films will take you to a place where no photographs, headlines, or social media posts can ever hope to. As a mark of the grit that went into bringing them to fruition, they have been in the spotlight at film festivals and gained traction wherever awards are disseminated. Some of these films may not yet have a distributor, but as Palestinian-American director Cherien Dabis pointed out at the Sundance Film Festival, their stories deserve to be told. They are not for the faint of heart, but such films are mandatory watching for whoever wants to gain a deeper understanding of the deep-rooted effects of displaced Palestinian identity. Space does not permit paying homage to them all, so join us as we take a closer look at a select few of the recent projects that understood their assignment, totally and completely. 'All That's Left Of You' One of two Palestinian offerings to premiere at this year's Sundance festival, this Dabis directorial tells the haunting tale of three generations of a family expelled from coastal Jaffa in 1948 and sent to the West Bank. Told in a non-linear fashion, this intimate and epic film zig-zags chronologically, weaving in and out from 1948 to the present day. Not only does Dabis wear the director's cap, she also stars as a mother forced to make a decision no mother should make when her son is wounded in the 1988 uprising. Many of the stories are based on the traumas Dabis and her family personally faced. As per AFP, one harrowing scene shows a father being is humiliated at gunpoint by Israeli soldiers in front of his young child, creating a father-son rift that will never heal. The fact that it is all rooted in reality makes the pain on the screen ever more acute. "I saw my dad humiliated at borders and checkpoints," Dabis told AFP, having frequented the West Bank as a child. "He confronted the soldiers, and they started screaming at him, and I was convinced they were going to kill him." The film does not yet have a theatrical distributor, but whenever it does, Dabis' story promises to be one worth carving out the time for. 'No Other Land' Having earned an Oscar nomination for best documentary feature, No Other Land paints the stark picture of the unlikely alliance between a Palestinian activist on the West Bank and an Israeli journalist. Like others in the land he calls home, Basel Adra, aforementioned activist (and lawyer, journalist, and filmmaker), has been fighting the mass expulsion of his people by Israeli occupation ever since childhood. Through Basel's eyes, we see the inevitable eradication of the villages he has known all his life, demolished gradually by Israeli forces. As everyone in the village is driven further and further away from home, Basel strikes up the unlikeliest of friendships with Yuval (said Israeli journalist), who goes out of his way to support Basel himself. But with Basel enduring a life under military occupation and Yuval being able to move freely, liberated of any restrictions, can this strange new alliance withstand political stand-offs? Driving home the very human aspect of life under occupation, No Other Land is a film created by a Palestinian-Israeli collective of four young activists. It is the celluloid equivalent of creative resistance, seeking long-delayed justice for everyone whose lives have been destroyed by conflict in the region. 'To a Land Unknown' Having been recognised at the Red Sea Film Festival, here is an action-packed drama film that attaches a face and a harrowing back story to the refugees otherwise reduced to just a number. Two displaced Palestinian refugees, Chatila and Reda, living on the fringes of society, crave to acquire a set of fake passports so they can flee Athens and move to Germany. But when Reda loses their hard-earned cash to his dangerous drug addiction, Chatila hatches a foolhardy plan rife with risk and doomed to failure. Rather exquisitely – and painfully – showing what happens when push comes to shove, Chatila suggests they pose as smugglers and take hostages so they can escape their hopeless surroundings before it is too late. It goes without saying that To a Land Unknown is as far removed from feel-good as can be. If the trailer is anything to go by, we are on the receiving end of an unapologetic view of the struggles that befall anyone who has been forced to leave their homeland under extreme circumstances. Directed by the Dubai-born Mahdi Fleifel, To a Land Unknown is tough viewing, but as good an eye-opener as any. 'From Ground Zero' The cumulative effort of 22 Gazan filmmakers, From Ground Zero offers something a little different, but no less gripping. Born against the backdrop of conflict (as is any work of art in the region, you will have doubtless gathered by now), the project was spearheaded by Palestinian director Rashid Masharawi and is a collection of 22 short films totalling nearly two hours and made in Gaza itself. Each film, ranging in length from three to six minutes, presents an intimate portrait of daily life in a region that is otherwise reduced to statistics in newsprint. We are offered a unique insight into the current reality in Gaza, getting a first-hand look at not just the tragedies, but also the moments of resilience banding everyone together. With 22 filmmakers on board, expect to be treated to a rich variety of genres, including fiction, animation documentary, docu-fiction, and experimental cinema. With sorrow, joy, and hope all entwined into one another, Gaza's vibrant artistic scene shines through against all odds. The collection was shortlisted for the Best International Feature Film category at the 2025 Academy Awards but missed out on a nomination. For those who remain on the fence about whether this venture is worth their time, Bowling for Columbine director Michael Moore offered his two cents in conversation with Deadline: "I tell people, do not avoid this film. If your kids are mature and of a certain age, take them to it. This isn't just the blood and gore you witness on cable news. This film is the response of people who are trying to stay alive while being bombarded and shot at."
Express Tribune
27-01-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
Palestinian voices grip Sundance
PARK CITY: Palestinian-American director Cherien Dabis was in the West Bank, days away from shooting her ambitious and deeply personal drama All That's Left Of You, when the events of October 7, 2023 forced a radical rethink. "We were forced to evacuate... It was really devastating to have to leave our Palestinian crew behind," recalled Dabis. "Everyone was so excited to work on this historic Palestinian film that felt like a milestone." The film – one of two Palestinian offerings premiering at this year's Sundance festival – follows three generations of a family who were expelled from coastal Jaffa in 1948 and sent to the West Bank. Costing between $5-8 million, it is a rare example of a major Palestinian-centred feature film getting a high-profile premiere in the West. "It's really, really hard to make any film, but it's particularly hard to make a Palestinian film," said Dabis. "It's hard to raise money for these films... I think people have perhaps been afraid to tell the story." Both intimate and epic in scope, the film jumps chronologically, from 1948 through the decades to the near-present day. Dabis herself stars as a mother forced to confront an impossible decision when her son is wounded in 1988 during the first intifada, or uprising. Many of the stories are based on the real experiences of Dabis and her family. In one harrowing scene, a father is humiliated at gunpoint by Israeli soldiers in front of his young child, creating a father-son rift that will never heal. "I saw my dad humiliated at borders and checkpoints," said Dabis, who visited the West Bank frequently as a child. "He confronted the soldiers, and they started screaming at him, and I was convinced they were going to kill him." 'Blowback' Though the film centres on a single family and is deeply personal in nature, the divisive nature of its subject matter means All That's Left Of You is certain to provoke criticism. Dabis says that the film does not set out to be political, but accepts that the impression is unavoidable. "We can't tell our stories without having to answer to some political questions," she told AFP. "We should be able to share our life experiences and tell our personal and family stories and share our points of view without having to contend with blowback. So often we do end up fearing it, even before we have told the story." That political reality reared again in October 2023, when an attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,210 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures. Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed at least 47,306 people in Gaza, the majority civilians, according to figures from the territory's health ministry that the United Nations considers reliable. Dabis and her team fled, and completed the film by using locations in Jordan, Cyprus and Greece standing in for her ancestral homeland. "I'm actually still shocked that we finished the film," Dabis told the premiere audience. It does not yet have a theatrical distributor. 'Dearth of our stories' Also premiering at Sundance on Sunday is the documentary Coexistence My Ass! It follows Jewish peace activist-turned-comedian Noam Shuster-Eliassi, as she constructs a one-woman show and grapples with the consequences of Israel's military campaign. "As an activist, I reached 20 people, and in a viral video mocking dictators, I reached 20 million people," she told AFP, admitting she is "anxious" about how the film will be received. Earlier this week, No Other Land, a film by a Palestinian-Israeli activist collective about Palestinians displaced by Israeli troops and settlers in the West Bank, earned an Oscar nomination for best documentary feature. It still does not have a US distributor. "The industry has to ask itself... there obviously is a need for these films, people want to see these films," said Coexistence My Ass! director Amber Fares. "I do think that perhaps in the last few years, we have seen a shift," added Dabis. "People are understanding that there's a dearth of our stories.. and that our stories are really missing from the mainstream narrative." AFP
Gulf Today
27-01-2025
- Entertainment
- Gulf Today
Palestinian voices take centre stage at Sundance
Palestinian-American director Cherien Dabis was in the West Bank, days away from shooting her ambitious and deeply personal drama "All That's Left Of You," when the events of October 7, 2023 forced a radical rethink. "We were forced to evacuate... It was really devastating to have to leave our Palestinian crew behind," recalled Dabis. "Everyone was so excited to work on this historic Palestinian film that felt like a milestone." The film – one of two Palestinian movies premiering at this year's Sundance festival – follows three generations of a family who were expelled from coastal Jaffa in 1948, and sent to the West Bank. Costing between $5-8 million, it is a rare example of a major Palestinian-centred feature film getting a high-profile premiere in the West. "It's really, really hard to make any film, but it's particularly hard to make a Palestinian film," said Dabis. "It's hard to raise money for these films... I think people have perhaps been afraid to tell the story." Both intimate and epic in scope, the film jumps chronologically, from 1948 through the decades to the near-present day. Director plays mother Dabis herself stars as a mother forced to confront an impossible decision when her son is wounded in 1988 during the first intifada, or uprising. Many of the stories are based on the real experiences of Dabis and her family. In one harrowing scene, a father is humiliated at gunpoint by Israeli soldiers in front of his young child, creating a father-son rift that will never heal. "I saw my dad humiliated at borders and checkpoints," said Dabis, who visited the West Bank frequently as a child. "He confronted the soldiers, and they started screaming at him, and I was convinced they were going to kill him." 'Blowback' Though the film centres on a single family and is deeply personal in nature, the divisive nature of its subject matter means "All That's Left Of You" is certain to provoke criticism. Dabis says that the film does not set out to be political, but accepts that the impression is unavoidable. "We can't tell our stories without having to answer to some political questions," she told AFP. "We should be able to share our life experiences and tell our personal and family stories and share our points of view without having to contend with blowback. "So often we do end up fearing it, even before we have told the story."
Yahoo
26-01-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘All That's Left of You' Director Says Recognition of Suffering Is One Way to Heal Gaza
The war between Israel and Hamas ravaging Gaza over the past year has put Palestine back in the global spotlight — and 'All That's Left of You' is director Cherien Dabis' effort to put those months of loss and violence into context. Long before the Hamas attacks against Israeli citizens on Oct. 7, 2023, Dabis had started work on 'All That's Left of You,' a film that opens with a Palestinian teen confronting Israeli soldiers and then working back through the events that led to that moment across decades and a generation through the eyes of her mother. Dabis recounted one of her most haunting memories growing up as the daughter of a West Bank refugee, traveling between there and Jordan and requiring foreign citizenship just to see their family. At the age of eight, her entire family was forced to be strip searched by Israeli soldiers at a checkpoint, leading to a tense confrontation between her father and the soldiers. 'I was just convinced they were going to kill him,' she told TheWrap editor-in-chief Sharon Waxman while sitting at TheWrap's Sundance Studio presented by World of Hyatt. She went on to explain that she wanted to create a story about the Palestinian struggle through the years. 'There were stories from before I was born, from 1948 from 1967, and I always wondered why people didn't know the Palestinian perspective of what happened to us and how that impacted us over generations,' she said. 'I just really wanted to tell that story so that … people could better understand the Palestinian perspective.' The teen's mother in the film is played by Maria Zreik, who is also Palestinian. In conversation with TheWrap at Sundance, she recounted learning about surviving hardship from her maternal grandmother, who was a Holocaust survivor, and her paternal grandparents, who initially fled Palestine during the start of the Nakba in 1948. Today, she still has family that lives in Galilee. 'I think you'd be hard pressed to find a Palestinian who didn't see themselves in this film in some way, because it really is our collective story,' she said. 'But I think also the film really speaks to larger themes of how we can overcome tragedy and personal loss.' Dabis and Zreik's film comes out at Sundance just a week after a cease-fire agreement came into effect in Gaza, with Hamas beginning to release Israeli hostages. With so many scars lingering from the Oct. 7 attacks and the subsequent bloodshed in Gaza, Dabis hopes that people who see 'All That's Left of You' will see that 'recognition of suffering is one way to heal.' 'There's been so much denial of what happened to Palestinians in 1948 and … I think that that perspective is incredibly damaging and dangerous,' she said. 'There's this passage of this trauma, which the movie shows from one generation to another that I think we need to recognize and look at so that we can then do something about it.' Watch Dabis and Zreik's full interview in the video above. The post 'All That's Left of You' Director Says Recognition of Suffering Is One Way to Heal Gaza | Video appeared first on TheWrap.
Arab News
26-01-2025
- Entertainment
- Arab News
Palestinian voices take center stage at Sundance
PARK CITY, United States: Palestinian-American director Cherien Dabis was in the West Bank, days away from shooting her ambitious and deeply personal drama 'All That's Left Of You,' when the events of October 7, 2023 forced a radical rethink. 'We were forced to evacuate... It was really devastating to have to leave our Palestinian crew behind,' recalled Dabis. 'Everyone was so excited to work on this historic Palestinian film that felt like a milestone.' The film — one of two Palestinian movies premiering at this year's Sundance festival — follows three generations of a family who were expelled from coastal Jaffa in 1948, and sent to the West Bank. Costing between $5-8 million, it is a rare example of a major Palestinian-centered feature film getting a high-profile premiere in the West. 'It's really, really hard to make any film, but it's particularly hard to make a Palestinian film,' said Dabis. 'It's hard to raise money for these films... I think people have perhaps been afraid to tell the story.' Both intimate and epic in scope, the film jumps chronologically, from 1948 through the decades to the near-present day. Dabis herself stars as a mother forced to confront an impossible decision when her son is wounded in 1988 during the first intifada, or uprising. Many of the stories are based on the real experiences of Dabis and her family. In one harrowing scene, a father is humiliated at gunpoint by Israeli soldiers in front of his young child, creating a father-son rift that will never heal. 'I saw my dad humiliated at borders and checkpoints,' said Dabis, who visited the West Bank frequently as a child. 'He confronted the soldiers, and they started screaming at him, and I was convinced they were going to kill him.' Though the film centers on a single family and is deeply personal in nature, the divisive nature of its subject matter means 'All That's Left Of You' is certain to provoke criticism. Dabis says that the film does not set out to be political, but accepts that the impression is unavoidable. 'We can't tell our stories without having to answer to some political questions,' she told AFP. 'We should be able to share our life experiences and tell our personal and family stories and share our points of view without having to contend with blowback. 'So often we do end up fearing it, even before we have told the story.' That political reality reared again in October 2023, when the Hamas attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,210 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures. Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed at least 47,306 people in Gaza, the majority civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory's health ministry that the United Nations considers reliable. Dabis and her team fled, and completed the film by using locations in Jordan, Cyprus and Greece standing in for her ancestral homeland. 'I'm actually still shocked that we finished the film,' Dabis told the premiere audience. It does not yet have a theatrical distributor. Also premiering at Sundance on Sunday is documentary 'Coexistence My Ass!' It follows Jewish peace activist-turned-comedian Noam Shuster-Eliassi, as she constructs a one-woman show and grapples with the consequences of Israel's military campaign. 'As an activist, I reached 20 people, and in a viral video mocking dictators, I reached 20 million people,' she told AFP, admitting she is 'anxious' about how the film will be received. Earlier this week, 'No Other Land,' a film by a Palestinian-Israeli activist collective about Palestinians displaced by Israeli troops and settlers in the West Bank, earned an Oscar nomination for best documentary feature. It still does not have a US distributor. 'The industry has to ask itself... there obviously is a need for these films, people want to see these films,' said 'Coexistence My Ass!' director Amber Fares. 'I do think that perhaps in the last few years, we have seen a shift,' added Dabis. 'People are understanding that there's a dearth of our stories.. and that our stories are really missing from the mainstream narrative.'
