From Ground Zero (2024) is a film project that brings together 22 short films made in the war-torn Gaza Strip under extraordinary circumstances for its makers, both as Palestinians and as filmmakers and artists. Each film was created during the Israeli military campaign in Gaza following the October 7, 2023 attacks by Palestinian militants. The project, curated by Palestinian director and producer Rashid Masharawi, is part of the Cairo International Film Festival’s rich special programmes featuring Palestinian cinema.
The films, created amid crisis, run between three and six minutes long and span fiction, documentary, animation, and experimental styles. The 22 filmmakers sought to capture fragments of life, blending personal and shared experiences. The result is an anthology that documents resilience, creativity, and the will to endure, while it celebrates life in a part of the world that has been abandoned, where most of the population is traumatized and displaced, with no sign of an end to the war.
Though brief, the films carry depth, capturing slices of daily life in Gaza that feel both personal and universally relatable. From Ground Zero was screened privately on the sidelines of the Cannes Film Festival by Masharawi as an act of protest. The official world premiere took place at the Amman International Film Festival. It as also selected for Toronto, and is currently Palestine’s submission for the 2025 Oscars.
Karim Satoum’s Hell’s Heaven opens the anthology with a surreal and deeply unsettling image: a man wakes up inside a body bag and uses it as a blanket to stay warm. The film’s dark humor and stark realism immediately set the tone of the project, encapsulating the absurdity and horror of life under siege. Satoum’s approach — mixing a Kafkaesque vibe with a touch of irony — looks at survival in its most bizarre and tragic forms.
In Ahmed Hassouna’s Sorry Cinema, personal loss and the creative process collide. Hesitant to create a film after the death of his brother and amidst the constant threat to his family, Hassouna was encouraged by Masharawi to turn his grief into art. The result is a poignant reflection on the power of cinema, where Hassouna apologizes to the medium itself for almost abandoning it. His short film is a moving tribute to the perseverance of Gaza’s artists, who are forced to create in circumstances that are practically unbearable.
Neda’a Abu Hassanah’s Out of Frame follows an artist who returns to her studio destroyed by shelling. Only a few portraits and sketches were saved. The sketches were supposed to be part of a graduation project, before the university was also bombed. All paintings were destroyed at the university. One painting the film is able to show is about the Gaza Sea, depicting how it is preserved as the only horizon and source of openness that Gaza civilians have. Another piece is the sculpture of a pigeon covered with pearls, as a symbol of peace and serenity. But now, the artist sees only a “murderous peace”, in her words.
One of the anthology’s most striking qualities is its attention to the small details of survival. In Recycling, Rabab Khamis shows a mother stretching a single bucket of water to meet her family’s many needs. The act is so ordinary yet speaks volumes about the ingenuity required to navigate daily life under occupation. Khamis’s focus on this seemingly mundane ritual reminds viewers of the quiet resilience found in Gaza’s homes.
Not every film in the collection is somber. Hana Eliwa’s No captures a group of young Gazans singing songs of hope and defiance. This uplifting short contrasts sharply with the anthology’s darker pieces, offering a rare glimpse of collective joy. Eliwa’s film reminds us that even in the direst circumstances, moments of lightness and resistance persist.
Children take center stage in several films, offering some of the anthology’s most powerful imagery. In A School Day, young students navigate a bombed-out classroom, their laughter and play blending eerily with the devastation around them. In Flashback, a young girl turns to music and dance as an escape from the harsh reality around her. Both films emphasize children’s resilience while reflecting the deep scars war leaves on the most vulnerable.
Yet, From Ground Zero isn’t just a testament to endurance; it’s also a portrayal of the fractured, interrupted lives shaped by Gaza’s struggles. Etimmad Wishah’s Taxi Wanissa remains unfinished, a stark reminder of the constraints faced by artists working in a war zone. The incomplete film becomes a symbol of how war interrupts lives, dreams, and creative endeavors.
The production of this anthology is a story in itself. Many filmmakers were displaced, working from temporary shelters or mourning loved ones lost to airstrikes. With resources severely limited, they shot films on handheld devices and improvised soundproofing setups, such as recording audio inside closets lined with rugs. Despite these challenges, the resulting films are polished yet raw, their aesthetic a testament to the unyielding spirit of Gaza’s artists.
What gives From Ground Zero its strength is its refusal to portray its subjects as mere victims. Instead, the filmmakers reveal Gaza as a place full of people who laugh, cry, resist, and create. By highlighting personal stories, the anthology challenges stereotypes and provides a layered view of life under siege.
This is not a film for passive consumption. It asks the viewer to engage, confronting the human cost of the war in Gaza. Rashid Masharawi’s leadership and the contributions of the filmmakers ensure these voices are preserved, even when the world often looks away.
Submitting From Ground Zero as Palestine’s entry for Best International Feature at the upcoming Oscars is both daring and significant. It frames the film as more than art — it’s a statement. On a global stage like the Oscars, the film compels audiences to see Gaza not as a distant crisis, but as a lived experience. Masharawi and his collaborators have created a work that will resonate far beyond its time.
Directors: Aws Al-Banna, Ahmed Al-Danf, Basil Al-Maqousi, Mustafa Al-Nabih, Muhammad Alshareef, Ala Ayob, Bashar Al Balbisi, Alaa Damo, Awad Hana, Ahmad Hassunah, Mustafa Kallab, Satoum Kareem, Mahdi Karera, Rabab Khamees, Khamees Masharawi, Wissam Moussa, Tamer Najm, Neda’a Abu Hassanah, Damo Nidal, Mahmoud Reema, Etimad Weshah, Islam Al Zrieai
Producers:Rashid Masharawi, Laura Nikolov
Music: Naseer Shamma
Editing: Pauline Eon, Denis Le Paven
Venue: Cairo International Film Festival
115 Mins
In Arabic
