Rarely makes a veneful film get a standing ovation on Its press conferenceBut before his world premiere at the 82nd Venice Film FestivalThe “The Voice of Hind Rajab” Has already received a glowing reception from film guests and critics at Lido.
The latest movie from Oscar-nominated Tunisian Director Kaouther Ben Hania is a dramatization of what happened when Red crescent-free-lifelons tried to speed up through a mountain of bureaucratic obstacles in January 2024 to save six-year-old Palestinian girls Hind Rajab, captured in a car in northern Gaza with several dead relatives that had been wiped out by the Israeli defense force.
Before the question and response part of the press conference, the star Saja Kilani read a statement on behalf of “Hind Rajab’s voice“Rollist and crew who noted:” “Hind Rajab’s voice” does not need our defense. This movie is not an opinion or a fantasy. It is anchored in truth. Hind’s story carries the importance of an entire people. Her voice is one of tens of thousands of children killed in Gaza over the past two years. ”
She added, “Behind every number is a story that must never be told. Hind’s story is about a child shouting,” Save me. “And the real question is, how have we let a child beg about life? (You can read the full statement below.)
Ben Hania, who has covered the conflicts of several Middle Eastern and North African in both her narrative work (“the man who sold his skin”) and her non -fiction (“Four daughters“) Said,” When I first heard the voice to Hind Rajab, there was something more than her voice. It was the very voice from Gaza who asked for help, and no one could answer. “It and a” strong desire and feeling of anger and helplessness gave birth to this film. “
Producer Nadim Cheikhrouha shared that he and Ben Hania actually got ready to make another movie before heard the story of Rajab. Both thought, “We can’t stop just looking at what’s going on and doing some other things. We have to do this movie and we have to do it quickly,” the producer said. “We had this feeling of emergency.”
The couple could go into production with only a few partners, although the list of producers for “The Voice of Hind Rajab” now includes Brad Pitt and his business plan B Entertainment, as well as Oscar-winning directors Jonathan Glazer and Alfonso Cuarón, and the couple Joaquin Phoenix and Roone Mara. “The fact that all these names joined the film means something,” Ben Hania said. “I never thought in my life that might be possible. So I’m very grateful for their support.”
When he listened to the stars in “The Voice of Hind Rajab” talk about the film, the prevailing feeling was clear. “It’s not a movie for us. It was really a duty to go and do this,” said Amer Hlehel. “We needed that movie to express ourselves as actors and artists.” Kileni added, “Usually with a movie you create a character, you build this story in your head, but this movie was no spectacle.”
A key choice that Ben Hania made to capture authentic answers from her actor was not to let them listen to the real voice recordings of Rajab used in the movie until they were on shooting every scene. “It’s one thing to read the script and know exactly what she said, and we rehearsed it, but that’s a completely different aspect when you hear her voice,” Kilani said.
“There were many tears, and even the team was in tears. Everyone. We were in a very small and closed set, and everyone was engaged,” said actress Clara Khoury. “The entire movie set, because of the cause, because of what is happening in Gaza and the genocide, the ongoing genocide that is not stopping yet.”
Actor Motaz Malhees, who plays Red Crescent Volunteer who is the first to talk to Rajab, shared that he felt a deeply personal connection to her story, after living on the West Bank as a child. “It wasn’t easy. I felt I died a thousand times to hear Hind’s voice. From the first moment it just sent me back to my childhood. So it wasn’t a new thing for me. It’s a life I was alive,” he said. “It was twice where I couldn’t continue filming. I got a panic attack and I had support from everyone too. It was difficult, but that is a responsibility for me.”
Benia, who predicts some criticism of the film, who dramatizes a true story, Ben Hania said: “When you reinforce the voice of the Palestinians, you are always personally accused of being exploiting, and it is another way to silence you.” But her hope is that “things should change. We have seen that the story all over the world like those who die in Gaza are safety damage in the media. And I think it is so dehumanizing, and that is why bio art and all kinds of expressions are very important to give these people a voice and a face.”
“The Voice of Hind Rajab” has already been selected as Tunisia’s submission for best international function and has been tied as New Frontunner for Golden Lion At the Venice Film Festival. Should it find an even larger platform, its actors can also be recognized in prices for the award, with Malhees, Kilani, Hlehel and Khoury, which are campaigns for best actors, best actress, best actors and best actress and Ben Hania, respectively, to be recognized in different categories, because she also wrote the film.
Read the full statement from “The Voice of Hind Rajab” crew and crew below:
“On behalf of all of us actors, and in the name of the whole team, we ask, isn’t enough mass death, starvation, dehumanization, destruction, the ongoing occupation.” The voice of Hind Rajab “does not need a defense. This movie is not an opinion or an imagination. It is rooted in truth. Killed in Gaza for the past two years alone. And the real question is, how have we let a child ask for life?”
“The Voice of Hind Rajab” premiered at 2025 Venice Film festival. It is currently seeking US distribution.
