Purpose
The Palestine Film Institute (PFI) is an independent Palestinian-led non-profit organization established in 2019 by a group of Palestinian film workers to support, connect, and sustain the ecosystem of Palestinian cinema across geographies. It emerged from a shared recognition of the need for an infrastructure that strengthens collaboration, solidarity, and the collective agency of Palestinian film workers.
Mission
PFI is an independent collective body that nurtures, connects, and advocates for Palestinian filmmakers and the cinema of Palestine. It works on strengthening the conditions in which Palestinian images, stories, and cinematic practices can be created, preserved, and encountered, framing cinema as a tool for Palestinian liberation, not only cultural expression.
Through programs that support the development, circulation, and long-term preservation of Palestinian cinema, PFI works to remove barriers that restrict Palestinian Filmmakers’ access to resources, audiences and professional networks.
PFI is an inclusive organization that collaborates with artists, scholars, and partners of all nationalities who share our values and dedication to the freedom, dignity, and liberation of Palestine.
Vision
A world in which Palestinian cinema is a dynamic cultural force, recognised, preserved, studied, and widely accessible on its own terms, grounded in narrative sovereignty, resilience (Sumud), and a plurality of voices, and understood not only as a site of struggle but as a thriving, creative ecosystem.
A future where Palestinian filmmakers possess the infrastructure, freedom, and collective agency necessary to produce, circulate, and sustain their work, and where audiences worldwide encounter the rich plurality of Palestinian images, histories, and narratives beyond reductive or imposed frames, contributing to a broader project of cultural and collective liberation rooted in radical imagination and practice
Executive Board
Salma Abu Ayyash | May Odeh | Elhum Shakerifar | Reem Shadid | Mohamed Jabaly
Advisory Board
Rashid Abdel Hamid | Salma Abu Ayyash | Hamza Abu Ayyash | Raed Andoni | Casey Asprooth-Jackson | Angel Cheng | Stoffel Debuysere | Jihan El Tahiri | Mohamed Jabaly | Nael Khliefi | Dorota Lech| May Odeh | Sawsan Qaoud | Saeed Taji Farouky | Rasha Salti | Marion Schmidt | Reem Shadid | Elhum Shakerifar | Lina Soualem | Mohanad Yaqubi
Legal Board
Nael Khliefi | Stoffel Debuysere | Mohanad Yaqubi
Goals
Together these goals support the full lifecycle of Palestinian cinema—from the development of new voices to the circulation and preservation of films within the cultural record.
1. Coordination & Partnerships
To strengthen collaboration across Palestinian film initiatives, labs, collectives, and pedagogical programs, while building strategic partnerships with aligned international institutions and creators whose work engages with Palestine.
2. Industry Access & Professional Exchange
To facilitate access to international expertise, industry platforms, and professional networks, enabling Palestinian filmmakers to participate in festivals, markets, and cultural forums while maintaining narrative autonomy.
3. Talent Development & Knowledge Exchange
To support the professional growth of Palestinian film workers through training programs, mentorship, workshops, and peer exchange in writing, production, distribution, and critical discourse.
4. Production & Co-Production Support
To strengthen the production capacity of Palestinian cinema by providing funding, advising on co-production pathways, and supporting filmmakers in navigating international financing structures.
5. Audiences, Circulation & Visibility
To expand the global reach of Palestinian cinema by connecting films with audiences, critics, curators, scholars, and distributors, while promoting diverse and nuanced representations of Palestine.
6. Knowledge, Scholarship & Archival Work
To deepen knowledge of Palestinian cinema—past, present, and future—by developing archives, digital reference libraries, and research resources that document films, filmmakers, and critical writing on Palestinian cinema.
7. Global Community & Solidarity
To cultivate a global community of filmmakers and allies working on films about Palestine, building networks of solidarity and mobilizing resources to sustain Palestinian cinema internationally.
8. Narrative Sovereignty & Cultural Advocacy
To defend and advance the right of Palestinian filmmakers to tell their own stories and produce their own images, contributing to broader cultural and political conversations about Palestine.