The anthology film From Ground Zero will represent Palestine this year in the Oscar race for Best International Feature. The news came over the weekend that the film will serve as Palestine’s official submission in the category. From Ground Zero is an anthology film in which 22 filmmakers capture the situation on the ground in Gaza amid the Israel-Hamas war that caught the world’s attention since October 2023. From Ground Zero will have its North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September.
“This nomination confirms the importance and role of Palestinian cinema even in the most difficult and unjust circumstances, as the directors of this work were able to tell their stories and document their human experiences in the harshest conditions,” Imad Hamdan, Palestinian minister of culture, told AL24.
The film marks the inaugural work from the Masharawi Fund for films and filmmakers in Gaza, which was founded by filmmaker Rashid Masharawi. From Ground Zero features a mix of short films that range from three to six minutes and span diverse genres including both documentary and drama. “This is not a collection of films that I think emphasizes victimhood as much as it emphasizes individuality of expression amongst people who are surviving against the worst circumstances imaginable” TIFF Docs programmer Thom Powers told POV while previewing the documentary slate.
Last year, Palestine submitted the TIFF doc Bye Bye Tiberias, director Lina Soualem’s portrait of her mother, actor Hiam Abbass, and her family’s connection to the land despite displacement. Palestine has twice been nominated in the Best International Feature category for the dramas Paradise Now (2005) and Omar (2013).
Non-fiction is also represented in the Oscar race so far in Uruguay’s submission The Door Is Here, directed by Facundo Ponce de León and Juan Ponce de León, and in Ireland’s unique hybrid drama Kneecap from director Rich Peppiatt. TIFF will also premiere Latvia’s animated submission Flow and Germany’s acclaimed drama The Seed of the Sacred Fig by Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof.
The number of documentary submissions in the international category has risen in recent years as countries harness the expanding appetite for non-fiction. Last year, three documentaries made the shortlist: Ukraine’s 20 Days in Mariupol, Tunisia’s Four Daughters, and Morocco’s The Mother of All Lies. Although none of them were nominated in the international category, 20 Days and Four Daughters both scored nominations in the doc category with the Ukrainian doc winning the prize. In recent years, films like Collective, Honeyland, and Flee have scored nominations in both categories.
Canada submitted documentaries back to back with Rojek in 2023 and Eternal Spring in 2022, although neither film made the shortlist. The Canadian selection is scheduled to be announced on Tuesday, August 27.
