For nearly two decades, the Boston Palestine Film Festival has presented more than 300 films exploring various facets of Palestinian life, culture and hardship. In its 19th year, the festival is holding screenings across multiple Boston-area theaters and cultural institutions from Oct. 17 to 26.
“I feel like we are giving an avenue to a Palestinian voice and perspective that is largely lost in Western media,” said Fatima Razzaq, an executive committee member for the festival.
This year, the festival comes at a crucial time.
In addition to the recent ceasefire in Gaza, broader concerns about censorship of Palestinian media in the United States have grown. Despite winning an Oscar and grossing $2.5 million at the box office, the 2024 Palestinian film “No Other Land” received no distribution offers.
Razzaq said she was nervous about backlash when she first started working with the festival, but so far negative feedback has been few and far between.
“Our reception is very positive, and I think that’s because we really position ourselves as a cultural and educational thing, and that just inherently feels welcoming,” she said.
Community engagement has always been an intentional cornerstone of the festival. In the past, BPFF has collaborated with local organizations including the Boston chapter of Jewish Voice for Peace and Brookline Booksmith, as well as other film festivals in the area.
When selecting programming for the festival, Razzaq said BPFF considers films viewers may want to see as well as programming intended to educate their audience.
“We tend to have this mixed bag of films that are geared towards folks that are already sort of fluent in the Palestinian cause and Palestinian culture, and then also films that are more educational and really seeking to engage folks in the discussion anew,” she said. “Our program does a good job of balancing between those two things.”
Among the numerous films that streamed at the festival was “Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk,” which screened at the Brattle Theatre in Cambridge on Tuesday.
The 2025 documentary, about Palestinian photojournalist Fatma Hassona, captures her day-to-day life while living through war and famine. Hassona was killed in an airstrike one day after the film was announced as a contender for Cannes Film Festival.
Aida Abujoub said she attended the festival to view films highlighting Palestinian humanity and culture.
“[The festival] shows them as humans, like any other human being who [is] struggling for their freedom and wants to live free,” she said. “Nobody is free until all of us are free.”
Festival attendee Johnny Guzman said “Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk” gave him an opportunity to have a more uniquely personal insight into the Israel-Palestine conflict.
“We may never know the full scope of the situation, but stories like these are true, and that’s what’s most important,” he said.
Another festival attendee, David Aitcheson echoed a similar sentiment.
“There’s not enough information about Palestinians and what their world is like,” he said. “By coming here, I am giving some support to having the information out there.”
Amidst the divisiveness in discourse surrounding the Israel-Palestine conflict, Razzaq said the film festival is meant to provide a space for the Palestinian perspective.
“That is what we’re all about,” she said. “Promoting the Palestinian perspective, the Palestinian voice, the Palestinian experience, and making sure that there is a place for it.”
