GAZA

A documentary by Garry Keane & Andrew McConnell

A German-Irish-Canadian co-production with Real Films, Filmoption International, Fine Point Films, gebrueder beetz filmproduktion and ZDF in cooperation with ARTE.

Gaza brings us into a unique place beyond the reach of television news reports to reveal a world rich with eloquent and resilient characters, offering us a cinematic and enriching portrait of a people attempting to lead meaningful lives against the rubble of perennial conflict.

GAZA

A documentary by Garry Keane & Andrew McConnell

A German-Irish-Canadian co-production with Real Films, Filmoption International, Fine Point Films, gebrueder beetz filmproduktion and ZDF in cooperation with ARTE.

Over the course of four years, between 2014 and 2018, GAZA documents the daily life of some of its inhabitants who, in their sheer desperate situation, have not yet lost hope.

Gaza is a narrow strip of Mediterranean coastline bordered by Israel and Egypt. It measures just 140 Sq. miles and is home to nearly 2 million Palestinians. It is part of the Palestinian Authority Territory and has been ruled by the Islamic Resistance movement Hamas since June 2007. Since then Israel has imposed a blockade on Gaza, completely sealing its borders. The Israeli-Hamas war 2014 has led to almost 2000 deaths and huge tension. The sensitive temporary ceasefire from August 2014 was ended in Spring 2018 when border protests escalated. No reconciliation in sight.

The documentary GAZA was shot in this troubled region and is yet no war film but a film about human beings and everyday life despite constant crisis. It brings together an eloquent, resilient, funny and courageous group of protagonists, on whose lives the world lens is often trained, without ever capturing their true essence. Their struggle, survival, resilience and sense of family  go to the very heart of humanity and human nature.

In Ahmed’s refugee camp makeshift home lives Gaza’s largest family of 14 sons, 22 daughters, one father and three wives. Less than 10 miles away, Karma’s plush apartment, together with her liberal mother, traditional father and three sisters tell a different story. Ahmed doesn’t look beyond Gaza for his life goals and dreams of becoming a big time fisherman on the mere three miles of restricted water beyond the coast. But as Karma gazes out to sea, she laments the unreachable opportunities that she knows lie beyond.

Alongside our two central characters, we follow a theatre director staging a production, a taxi driver, a paramedic, a fisherman, a fashion designer. Through these ordinary, richly observed lives we gain a nuanced and complex portrait of life in this remarkable place.

Experienced Irish filmmaker Garry Keane and award winning photographer Andrew McConnell have embedded themselves deep within the community and culture and have established unprecedented access. They have developed a clear vision for a film they passionately want to make: the untold story of Gaza through its vibrant, undocumented people.

Directed and written by:
Garry Keane & Andrew McConnell

Producers:
BRENDAN J. BYRNE
CHRISTIAN BEETZ
PAUL CADIEUX
GARRY KEANE
ANDREW McCONNELL

Executive Producers:
TREVOR BIRNEY
MARYSE ROUILLARD

Film Editor:
MICK MAHON

Director of Photography:
ANDREW McCONNELL

Sound recordist:
BOB BRENNAN

Music:
RAY FABI

Line producer:
ALISON TOOMEY
FADY HANONA
KATHRIN ISBERNER

Production Administrators:
ANDREW NOBLE
MARIE-PIERRE RODIER
MELISSA MIRA

Producers gebrueder beetz filmproduktion:
LEA-MARIE KÖRNER
KERSTIN MEYER-BEETZ
CAROLINE SCHAPER

Commissioning Editor ZDF/ARTE:
MARTIN PIEPER

Distributor:
FILMOPTION INTERNATIONAL

Koproduktion

Fine Point Films_Logo ZDF Filmoption International Real_Films SVT_logo DR

Kooperation

Arte G.E.I.L.E.

Förderer

Screen Ireland Northern Ireland Screen

  • Gaza

    Word premiere Sundance Film Festival 2019 - Park City
    29 January 2019 at 3:00 pm

  • Gaza

    Egyptian Theatre - Park City
    30 January 2019 at 10:45 am

  • Gaza

    Redstone Cinema 1 - Park City
    31 January 2019 at 12:30 pm

  • Gaza

    Park Avenue Theatre - Park City
    01 February 2019 at 9:00 am

  • Gaza

    Salt Lake City Library Theatre - Salt Lake City
    02 February 2019 at 12:00 pm

  • GAZA

    ARTE
    26 June 2019 at 11:00 pm

  • GAZA

    Rio 2 - Filmfest München
    28 June 2019 at 4:00 pm

  • GAZA

    Atelier 2 - Filmfest München
    02 July 2019 at 10:30 am

  • GAZA

    Astor ARRI Kino, followed by Q&A - Filmfest München
    05 July 2019 at 5:30 pm

  • GAZA

    Astor ARRI Kino, followed by Q&A - Filmfest München
    06 July 2019 at 8:00 pm

  • Gaza

    TIFF Bell Lightbox - Toronto
    22 September 2019 at 7:15 pm

  • Gaza

    Amnesty Centre - London
    28 September 2019 at 8:00 pm

  • Gaza

    Haifa Film Festival - Haifa
    12 October 2019 at 1:30 pm

  • Gaza

    Arab Film Festival - San Francisco
    16 October 2019 at 6:00 pm

  • Gaza

    Haifa - Haifa
    18 October 2019 at 4:15 pm

  • Gaza

    Arab Film Festival - Oakland
    19 October 2019 at 12:30 pm

  • Gaza

    Boston Palestine Film Festival - Boston
    23 October 2019 at 8:00 pm

  • Gaza

    Irish Screen America Film Festival - New York
    26 October 2019 at 7:30 pm

  • Gaza

    Harvard University - Boston
    30 October 2019 at 6:00 pm

  • Gaza

    Jaffa Film Festival - Jaffa
    02 November 2019 at 6:00 pm