With seven months still to go before the Academy Awards take place, anticipation is already mounting for the 98th edition of Hollywood’s biggest night. And from all the early headlines we’ve seen fly by, most of them seem to be about Palestine 36, Palestine’s official submission to compete in the Best International Feature category of the upcoming ceremony.
The film, which was directed by Bethlehem-born filmmaker Annemarie Jacir, tells the true story of what is referred to today as the 1936 Arab Revolt, when Palestinians protested against the British occupation of their land. Centered around a character called Yusuf, we follow a part of history through his perspective as he moves between Jerusalem and his rural home.
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Set to premiere at the 50th edition of the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) on Sept. 5, the cast — which includes Irish actor Liam Cunningham and Palestinian stars Hiam Abbass and Salih Bakri, amongst others — now all hope to make history by representing Palestine at one of the most respected forums of cinema. Ideally, they will bring a prize back too.
This won’t be Palestine’s first submission to the Academy Awards’ Best International Film category, as the country’s Ministry of Culture has been submitting entries since 2003. In that timeframe, only two films managed to secure nominations: Paradise Now, directed by Hany Abu-Assad, in 2005 and Omar, which he also directed, in 2013.
It also won’t be Annemarie Jacir’s first attempt to represent Palestine at the Oscars. The 51-year-old filmmaker has already had three of her works selected in the past, namely Salt of This Sea in 2008, When I Saw You in 2012, and Wajib in 2017. Known for centering most of her scripts around Palestinian stories, Jacir now returns with a film many believe has the potential to finally break through — and we only hope Palestine 36 will.
