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At today’s Cannes Docs Palestine showcase, where four works in progress were pitched to industry delegates, spokespersons of the Palestine Film Institute (PFI) called for Cannes and key decision-makers to amplify the voice of Palestinian filmmakers, as the war in Gaza is causing an unprecedented humanitarian crisis.
“Cannes Docs provides a vital platform where Palestinian stories can present our true complex realities beyond headlines and transcend imposed boundaries,” IDFA-winning Palestinian filmmaker Mohamed Jabaly (“Life is Beautiful,” “Ambulance”), in charge of the PFI’s Palestine Documentary Hub, told Variety. “The powerful medium of documentary allows filmmakers to transform restriction into liberation at a moment when countering misrepresentation and reclaiming our narratives is more important than ever.”
Added producer Mohanad Yaqubi, PFI public program consultant: “The return of the Palestine Pavilion to Cannes [the first time being in 2018] at this time represents the strength of artistic persistence and the potential of creative voices that refuse to be silenced. It is extremely important that festivals with global influence, such as Cannes, hold space for Palestinian artists to be included in cinematic conversations during our struggle against attempted erasure in an ongoing genocide,” he stated.
Taking center stage at the Marché du Film‘s Lerins 4, both Jabaly and Yaqubi warmly thanked Cannes Docs’ organizers for their long-standing partnership. “It’s the 7th time that we’ve collaborated, and we are extremely thankful for Cannes Docs’ unwavering support,” they stated.
Pierre-Alexis Chevit, head of Cannes Docs, said: “We’ve been having Palestinian Showcases of docs-in-progress since 2018, as it’s always been very important for us to give visibility to stories from Palestine and the diaspora and help preserve all Palestinian narratives. Today, this obviously has an even greater importance and urgency than ever before,” he commented.
The four documentaries from first-time filmmakers showcased today – “Wolf Game” by Patricia El, “My Rebel Heart” by Ida Kat Balslev, “Sama” by Rabab Khamis and “Asphalt” by Hamza Hamideh – were selected by an independent jury including Francesco Gai Via, Venice Film Festival programmer and industry expert, Arte France’s experimental documentary expert Rasha Salti and Keisha Nicole Knight, founder of Solidarity Media Network.
London-based producer and curator Elhum Shakerifar (Hakawati), Bafta-nominated for “A Syrian Love Story,” said, “The four projects selected for Cannes speak to different aspects of the Palestinian experience, with the potential to become bold, cinematic and important works that will resonate widely.” She also underlined the recent success of other doc works promoted by the PFI that gained acclaim and visibility: the Palestinian/Jordanian “A State of Passion” by Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi, selected for the Cairo, Geneva’s Forum on Human Rights and Sheffield festivals among others, and “The Palestine Comedy Club” by Alaa Aliabdallah (Palestine/U.K.) handled by First Hand Films, which was pitched at last year’s Cannes Docs Palestine Showcase.
All four films are backed by prominent producers and/or filmmakers, including “From Ground Zero’s” Palestinian producer Rashid Masharawi and “Apolonia, Apolonia’s” Danish producer Sidsel Lønvig Siersted.
2025 Palestine Doc Showcase
“Asphalt,” (Hamza Hamideh, Jordan)
The film is produced by Jordanian/Dutch seasoned producer and cinematographer Mahmoud Massad, a Sundance winner for the film “Recycle.”
“Amid the escalating war in Gaza, 20-year-old Debs, a Palestinian refugee from the Baqa’a camp in Jordan, dreams of marrying his beloved. He is forced to postpone the wedding due to the death of his relatives in Gaza, one after another,” runs the logline.
“I chose to shoot my movie in the Baqa’a camp – perhaps the biggest in the world – because people see this place as a desolate ghetto, but I have family there. I wanted to give a different image of this place,” said the director. The film, in post-production, is due for release in 2026.
“My Rebel Heart,” (Ida Kat Balslev, Denmark, Palestine)
Prominent Danish producer Sidsel Lønvig Siersted of Siersted Film, credited for the multi-awarded and smash hit “Apolonia, Apolonia,” a double IDFA winner in 2022, and Sony Classics’ “Aquarela” among others, is driving this project in pre-production.
Set in Gaza, the film follows young actress and activist Yara as she navigates the delicate balance between her artistic ambitions and the fight for Palestinian liberation.
“Yara fights for peace in the world and the right to become a Palestinian woman, actress, sister and daughter. But she sees limits from all fronts as she was born in Jaffa [Israel] and now lives in Ramallah [a Palestinian city in the West Bank]. “With Israeli citizenship, she’s being denied to be who she was supposed to be. Her contradictions represent the inner antagonist in the film,” said the rising filmmaking talent.
“In the film, we follow her struggle with her mum and sister, and their relationships form the emotional core. We see three generations of women facing a world that is constantly trying to redefine them. I want to honor this spirit and the courage it takes to follow your own voice, your own truth that brings us closer to a more human world,” she observed.
Siersted said she aims to deliver the film in 2026.
“Sama,” (Rabab Khamis, Palestine, France)
High-profile Palestinian producer Rashid Masharawi backs this project. His previous work includes this year’s Oscar-short-listed “From Ground Zero,” released in the US via Watermelon Pictures.
The clip shown at Cannes Docs, introduced via a video link by Gaza-based Khamis, revealed a moving portrait of Sama (10), filmed in her daily chores, which range from collecting plastic and cardboard to selling fuel. The film team in Cannes said it will be shot mostly without dialogue, partly out of respect to the main protagonist who decided not to talk.
The film’s premiere is slated for September 2025.
“Wolf Game,” (Patricia El, Palestine, U.S., Spain)
Spain/U.S.-based filmmaker and visual artist Patricia El’s work has played at numerous festivals, with her 2023 virtual reality doc “Remember This Place” premiering at the Venice Biennale. “Wolf Game” is produced through her own label, The Office for Public Therapy Politics.
Speaking to Variety, El said her intention with “Wolf Game” is “to show the infrastructures and flows of funds that enable the colonization of Palestinian land across the territory. We do this by showing three interweaving narratives: the story of a Palestinian shepherd boy who is the Main protagonist, a settler boy who becomes a shepherd in order to take over Palestinian land, and a crypto gamer who lives in Los Angeles and plays a crypto game called ‘Wolf Game,’ where players are encouraged to accumulate as much virtual land and sheep as possible, at the expense of other players in the game.”
Delivery of the film is set for June 2026.
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