Tunisian director Kouser Ben Hania’s politically indicted drama The Voice of Hind Rajab was set as the opening film for the first Doha Film Festival, which will take place from November 20th to 28th in Qatar’s capital.
The Doha screening will record the Middle East premiere of the moving drama. It tells the true story of a five-year-old Palestinian girl who was attacked by Israeli forces in Gaza and was left behind in a car that later died. The Voice of Hind Rajab, which recently won the Silver Lion Grand Jue Award at the Venice Film Festival, is supported by the Doha Film Institute (DFI). He was also selected as a Tunisian nominee in the Oscars competition for the best international feature film at the 98th Academy Awards.
Since the war in Gaza began almost two years ago, Qatar has been a key mediator of ceasefire talks involving Israel and Hamas. Last week, Israeli airstrikes in Doha killed several people who belonged to Hamas and Qatar’s internal security forces. On Tuesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Qatar’s ruling chief, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani. The summit was held the day after Qatar held a summit denounced the airstrikes by Arab and Islamic countries.
Holding a festival at “The Voice of Hind Rajab” is about celebrating the truth. It’s fragile, heartbreaking and urgent,” said Fatma Hassan Alremaihi, director of the Doha Film Festival and CEO of DFI, in a statement. “The trembling, unbeatable Hind’s voice speaks to all of us. It is the story of all children, women and men whose resilience continues to inspire global conscience by violent attacks on Israeli occupation. We tried to save innocent children.”
She concluded: “By respecting Hind’s memories and countless other memories, we want to awaken empathy, inspire justice and remind the world that the story isn’t going to do anyway.”
Before the Venice bow, “The Voice of Hind Rajab” was aired by Brad Pitt, Joaquin Phoenix, Rooney Mara and others as producers. Phoenix and Mara attended the Venice premiere to show support for the film.
As the small, oil-rich Arab nations diversify from the energy sector to cultural, media and entertainment, DFI has steadily grown into a key foundation for the film industry in the Middle East and North Africa, as broadcasters Al Jazeera and the 2022 FIFA World Cup football tournament have proven.
The upcoming Doha Film Festival will turn DFI’s existing Ajal Film Festival, dedicated to cinemas for young and family, into a more ambitious international event for a wider audience. There are four competitions: International Feature Film Competition, Short Film Competition, Ajal Film Competition (the unique Youth Jury Court of the Festival), and Qatar Competition, dedicated to projects created in Qatar regardless of the source of the director.
