Towards the middle of a chapter on “The Palestine Film Unit’s Cinematic Experience” in her book Knights of Cinema: The Story of the Palestine Film Unit, Khadijeh Habashneh notes: “The film unit decided to avoid using two languages: one for the people, and one for the world.”
In its context, this seems hardly more than a passing observation, but in fact, it is central to the philosophy behind the Palestine Film Unit (PFU). For what the author is really describing is the revolutionary nature of Palestinian cinema, how it sought to bridge the local and the global, not by diluting its message for international audiences, but by allowing the true objectives of the Palestinian people to speak directly to the world.
Does cinema really have the power to communicate the depth of a national struggle without compromise? In the PFU’s case, the filmmakers believed that it did. They rejected rigidly defined roles and embraced a participatory approach, where each member contributed to every stage of production, from the initial idea to the final edit. This collective, fluid approach was not just about filmmaking; it also reflected the solidarity and unity at the heart of the Palestinian revolution.
As quickly becomes clear, Knights of Cinema: The Story of the Palestine Film Unit is as much about the intertwining of national struggle and cinematic storytelling as it is about the technical craft of filmmaking. This is the central tension that the book returns to again and again: the role of cinema as both a tool of documentation and an instrument of resistance.
In the late 1960s, as Palestinian filmmakers like Mustafa Abu Ali struggled to establish a cinematic presence, the field of battle was both literal and metaphorical. On the one hand, they faced the physical and political challenges of documenting the struggle for liberation. On the other, they had to carve out a space for Palestinian stories within a global cinematic landscape that often sought to marginalise or distort their narrative. Abu Ali’s journey from Al-Malha to becoming a leading figure in Palestinian cinema exemplifies this dual struggle. His personal experiences of displacement and loss gave him a unique perspective on the importance of authentic storytelling, making him a central figure in the creation of a Palestinian cinematic identity.
This book is on the shortlist for the Palestine Book Awards 2024, please click here to read the full review on the Palestine Book Awards site.