Dir. Ameen Nayfeh

Denied entry on a technicality, we follow the journey of a Palestinian father trying to reach his injured son on the other side of the West Bank separation wall.

Dir. Emad Burnat & Guy Davidi

5 Broken Cameras is a deeply personal, first-hand account of life and non-violent resistance in Bil’in, a West Bank village surrounded by Israeli settlements. Shot by Palestinian farmer Emad Burnat, who bought his first camera in 2005 to record the birth of his youngest son, Gibreel, the film was co-directed by Burnat and Guy Davidi, an Israeli filmmaker. Structured in chapters around the destruction of each one of Burnat’s cameras, the filmmakers’ collaboration follows one family’s evolution over five years of village upheaval. As the years pass in front of the camera, we witness Gibreel grow from a newborn baby into a young boy who observes the world unfolding around him with the astute powers of perception that only children possess. Burnat watches from behind the lens as olive trees are bulldozed, protests intensify and lives are lost in this cinematic diary and unparalleled record of life in the West Bank. – Cinema Politica

Dir. Darin J. Sallam

A historically accurate coming of age film set among the Nakba of 1948. A young girl’s life is turned upside down by the tragedy.

Dir. Hany Abu-Assad

Omar is accustomed to dodging surveillance bullets to cross the separation wall to visit his secret love Nadia. But occupied Palestine knows neither simple love nor clear-cut war. On the other side of the wall, the sensitive young baker Omar becomes a freedom fighter who must face painful choices about life and manhood. – Amazon

Dir. David Osit

Mayor follows Musa Hadid, the Christian mayor of Ramallah, during his second term in office. His immediate goals: repave the sidewalks, attract more tourism, and plan the city’s Christmas celebrations. His ultimate mission: to end the occupation of Palestine. Rich with detailed observation and humor, Mayor offers a portrait of dignity amidst the madness and absurdity of endless occupation while posing a question: how do you run a city when you don’t have a country?

Dir. Hany Abu-Assad

In 2013, 24-year-old Gaza Strip resident Mohammad Assaf slipped through the Israeli cordon into Egypt, where he entered the televised ‘Arab Idol’ singing contest. A few months later he was declared the winner – and became an icon to millions of Palestinians. This biopic tells Assaf’s story in old-fashioned rags-to-riches fashion, and the result is perhaps more well-meaning than genuinely convincing. But ‘The Idol’ does offer a fascinating window into life in the weeping sore that is Gaza, and the mere existence of a film about the Palestinian people that doesn’t depict them as terrorists or victims is to be celebrated. – Timeout

Dir. Farah Nabulsi

On his wedding anniversary, Yusef and his young daughter set out in the West Bank to buy his wife a gift. Between soldiers, segregated roads and checkpoints, how easy would it be to go shopping?

Dir. Annemarie Jacir

Palestinian filmmaker Annemarie Jacir directs this lively, deceptively low-key road movie, which drives up alongside its conflicted leads, deftly performed by a real-life father and son. Exploring the clash between tradition and modernity, Wajib shows how humor can be a powerful tool of resistance. – Mubi