Last week, I had the privilege of attending the Palestinian Film Festival at Cinema Nova. As I delved deeper into film festival culture and contemplated what constitutes a successful event beyond mere screenings, I approached the festival with curiosity, particularly given the current state of affairs happening in Palestine and all that Palestinians are enduring. Unsure of what to anticipate, I wondered whether the festival would primarily serve as an educational platform rather than a celebratory one, aiming to enlighten attendees about Palestinian culture.
Prior to the screening, I checked the Palestinian Film Festival’s social media pages and website to hopefully give me some insight on what to expect. I gathered from their website and Instagram page, as well as Cinema Nova’s website page on the film festival, that there wouldn’t be much going on other than a film screening. I wanted to understand what festivities, if any, would they incorporate into a film festival as serious and important as the Palestinian Film Festival. If the festival did decide to include festive elements, what would that entail? An opportunity to taste Palestinian food or listen to Palestinian music? These questions only added to my confusion about what a film festival is comprised of – but after learning more about the film festival history in Australia, particularly the purpose behind the Olinda Film Festival’s inception, I understood that film festivals can exist solely to educate, give access to those who wouldn’t typically watch those films, and encourage social change (Stevens 2016). I would have probably never watched a Palestinian film at my own leisure, but the Palestinian Film Festival gave individuals all throughout Australia the opportunity to learn more about Palestinian culture in a collective and solidarity environment.
While the festival lacked a traditional festive atmosphere, it possessed elements that transcended the typical moviegoing experience. Because I was attending the festival’s opening night, I made note of all the elements that would fit a film festival’s description, especially something as exciting as an opening night. Some of these aspects included a large poster and pamphlets in the cinema lobby promoting the festival, attendees proudly wearing their keffiyehs to show their solidarity with Palestine, a festival representative who spoke prior to the film on the importance of showcasing Palestinian life and culture, as well as a short film before “Alam”. The collective spirit and shared purpose transformed the film screening into a powerful and meaningful experience. It illuminated for me the essence of a film festival – a platform to not only watch movies but also to connect with others and engage in broader social and cultural dialogues.
This experience gave me more insight into what to expect from a film festival – although I do envision our studio’s festival experience to be one more along the lines of what we watched in “Film Spa”, I have a new appreciation for a film festival in its simplest form – an opportunity to watch movies that you might have never had the chance to see before and to feel a connection to those around you. It was actually attending a film festival that gave me a deeper understanding of what constitutes a film festival, even if it doesn’t seem to fit the mould of other more well-known festivals (Valck et al. 2007).
References
de, VM, Kredell, B, & Loist, S (eds) 2007, Film Festivals : History, Theory, Method, Practice, Taylor & Francis Group, London, accessed March 21 2024. Available from: ProQuest Ebook Central https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/rmit/reader.action?docID=4426549&ppg=37
Stevens, K. (2016). Enthusiastic Amateurs: Origins of Australia’s Film Festival Movement. In: Australian Film Festivals. Framing Film Festivals. Palgrave Macmillan, New York, accessed 21 March 2024. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-58130-3_2