NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� Basel Adra, a Palestinian, and Yuval Abraham, an Israeli, spent five years making a movie that depicts daily life in Adra鈥檚 village under . The resulting film, has been hailed as one of the year's most powerful documentaries, winning prizes at international film festivals.
It鈥檚 also stoked controversy, prompted death threats for its makers and 鈥� despite the acclaim 鈥� remains without an American distributor.
Opening this week in France and next week in the United Kingdom, the feature-length documentary has already sold in many international territories. Its status as an Academy Awards contender remains intact 鈥� after hosting it during the New York Film Festival, the Lincoln Center will screen the film for a one-week, Oscar-qualifying run beginning Friday. But the filmmakers believe the monthslong inability to find a U.S. distributor boils down to political reasons, with Election Day between Democratic nominee Kamala Harris and Republican nominee Donald Trump looming.
鈥淢aybe they鈥檙e afraid to be defunded if Trump wins,鈥� says Abraham, speaking in an interview from Paris alongside Adra. 鈥淏ut Basel risked his life for years since he was a young boy to film this material. That requires a lot of courage. Can we not have one distributor with the courage, OK, to take a certain risk, but to distribute such an acclaimed and such an important documentary?鈥�
鈥淣o Other Land鈥� began long before the current chapter of the . It鈥檚 told largely from the perspective of Adra, who was born in
The area, a rugged mountainous region south of Hebron, has for decades been a site of protest against the Israeli government, which to make room for a military training ground.
In 1980, the Israeli military declared Masafer Yatta a closed 鈥渇iring zone." Israeli authorities said the residents 鈥� Arab Bedouin who practice a traditional form of agriculture and animal herding and have lived on the land 鈥� only used the area part of the year and had no permanent structures there at the time.
Adra was born into this; his father was an activist on behalf of the community and Adra was 5 when his mother first took him to a demonstration.
Following a 2022 court decision, the army set up checkpoints and regularly demolished community structures 鈥� including . A camera, Adra says, 鈥渂ecame the only tool beside our steadfastness.鈥� He captured the regular demolitions of homes, the violent encounters with Israeli settlers and the ongoing effect the struggle has had on the villagers.
鈥淚 started filming when we started to end,鈥� he says in the film, which takes place between 2019 and 2023.
It鈥檚 a long-term, on-the-ground portrait of the realities of life under Israeli military law. Families are uprooted. Children grow up in poverty. People die. But its makers never envisioned how much worse things could get.
Made by a Palestinian-Israeli collective (the other two directors are Hamdan Ballal and Rachel Szor), 鈥淣o Other Land鈥� wrapped shooting last October, just as the occurred and began.
On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas militants killed over 1,200 people across southern Israel, taking some 250 people hostage. Israel's retaliatory offensive on the Gaza has killed more than 43,000 Palestinians, over half of whom are women and children, say Palestinian health officials who do not distinguish between civilians and combatants. In the West Bank, frequent Israeli raids into Palestinian cities and towns, as well as mounting violence from Jewish settlers, have driven up the death toll since Oct. 7 to more than 760 killed.
鈥淚 look at the news just over the past few days. Hundreds of people in Gaza being killed, Israeli hostages dying, massacres happening every day, nonstop,鈥� says Abraham, a Jewish journalist from southern Israel. 鈥淎nd we鈥檙e here showing a film in air-conditioned cinemas. There鈥檚 a big dissonance in participating in festivals when nothing is festive and everything is becoming worse.鈥�
The war in Gaza 鈥� and now the and the specter of 鈥� has inevitably altered the landscape for 鈥淣o Other Land,鈥� a film that marries documentary filmmaking and activism to put a human face to Palestinian suffering. It's won awards in Berlin, Switzerland, Vancouver and South Korea. But for Adra, little of that matters.
鈥淲e made this movie to not lose Masafer Yatta, to not lose our homes,鈥� says Adra. 鈥淚t鈥檚 very successful for the movie, but when I go back to the reality, it鈥檚 changing for the worse. So there鈥檚 this conflict on my mind. The movie is succeeding and has publicity, people want to watch it, but it鈥檚 not helping what鈥檚 happening on the ground. It doesn鈥檛 change anything.鈥�
鈥淣o Other Land鈥� was enmeshed in controversy soon after its February debut at the Berlin Film Festival. While accepting the documentary award, Adra spoke about the difficulty of doing so 鈥渨hen there are tens of thousands of my people being slaughtered and massacred by Israel in Gaza.鈥� Abraham called for an end to Israel鈥檚 occupation of the Palestinian territories.
In Germany, where anti-Israel statements have acute sensitivity, numerous politicians criticized the filmmakers for making no mention of Israeli victims or Hamas. Claudia Roth, Germany鈥檚 culture minister, said the speeches were 鈥渟hockingly one-sided.鈥� Kai Wegner, mayor of Berlin, called them 鈥渋ntolerable relativization.鈥� Ron Prosor, Israel鈥檚 ambassador to Germany, called it 鈥渂latant antisemitic discourse.鈥�
Abraham, who says he received death threats, was 鈥渆nraged鈥� by the response. As a descendent of Holocaust victims, he believes labeling criticism of Israeli policies as antisemitic empties the phrase of meaning.
鈥淲e called for equality between Palestinians and Israelis. We called for an end to the occupation. We spoke about what we see as the political roots of the violence that exists in our land. To me, this the most important message that there can be,鈥� says Abraham. 鈥淚t feels like we鈥檙e living in the 鈥�1984鈥� novel where you make these kinds of statements and that鈥檚 somehow labeled as controversial.鈥�
Adra and Abraham's relationship, one they hope can stand for Israeli-Palestinian coexistence, is a central component of 鈥淣o Other Land.鈥�
Together, they rush to document the arrival of tanks or military bulldozers; they lament the little attention their social media posts or articles find online; they ponder their futures.
But there is also tension in their differences. One lives under civilian law, the other under military law. Whether Adra will be able to pass through checkpoints to travel abroad is always in question. In the film, their Palestinian co-director, Ballal, is seen skeptically questioning Abraham鈥檚 place in the struggle.
鈥淚t could be your brother or friend who destroyed my home,鈥� Ballal tells him.
鈥淎s an Israeli, I believe that the status quo is harmful for Israelis for the simple fact that security in the land is mutual,鈥� Abraham tells The Associated Press. 鈥淧eople are dependent on one another. We cannot expect to have security if Palestinians don鈥檛 have freedom.鈥�
Even before the war in Gaza, Adra and Abraham struggled to gain international attention for Masafer Yatta.
Now, by the destruction in Gaza, and it鈥檚 difficult for them to feel any hope. Days after Oct. 7, Adra鈥檚 cousin was shot and killed point blank by a settler, an incident captured in the film. 鈥淔or me,鈥� says Adra, 鈥渢here鈥檚 nothing clear where this is going.鈥�
In meetings with distributors, the filmmakers say, there's been a lot of interest. 鈥淭hey say they love the film, but then they're hesitant,鈥� says Abraham.
Whether U.S. film distributors have grown too cautious politically was also a prominent question for which only found a home shortly before it was released last month. 鈥淯nion,鈥� a well-received documentary about labor organization at Amazon, recently resorted to self-distributing its release.
鈥淥nce upon a time, American film distributors and exhibitors embraced controversy 鈥� especially when it came to acclaimed movies whose controversy was inextricably intertwined with their humanity,鈥� the New York magazine critic Bilge Ebiri wrote of 鈥淣o Other Land.鈥� 鈥淎re these companies holding back out of budgetary reasons, out of cowardice, out of political disagreement?鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 not allowing the conversation even to begin by silencing our voices, the voices of a Palestinian who is resisting the occupation and the voice of an Israeli who is also against occupation and believes in a future of equality and justice for everyone,鈥� Abraham says. 鈥淲hy are you blocking these kinds of voices from entering the space of mainstream cinema in the U.S.?鈥� (The film also lacks an Israeli distributor.)
However it gets seen, the filmmakers hope 鈥淣o Other Land鈥� remains a vital document to the current crisis.
鈥淲e wanted to send the message that the status quo is very harmful and it should change,鈥� says Adra. 鈥淎 political solution is needed. That was before Oct. 7. We don鈥檛 want to get to a day such as Oct. 7. We want to warn global leaders to take actions and stop being complicit with the occupation.鈥�
鈥淲hat鈥檚 happening is very, very sad and tragic,鈥� he adds. 鈥淚 never imagined in my lifetime that something like this can happen, and that the world would let it go on.鈥�
Jake Coyle, The Associated Press
