Palestine Film Institute Announces First
Grantees of the Palestine Film Fund

BRUSSELS, February 4, 2026 – The Palestine Film Institute (PFI) today announced the inaugural recipients of the Palestine Film Fund (PFF), marking a historic milestone in supporting Palestinian filmmakers worldwide. Following the fund's launch in May 2025 at the Cannes Film Festival, the PFF selected nine outstanding projects out of 167 submissions for its first funding round.

The inaugural cycle awarded grants to six feature-length films and three short films in various stages of development and production, with financial support totalling 45,000 Euro. Selected projects span diverse themes and genres—from intimate family portraits to explorations of displacement, memory, resistance and resilience—all told through authentic Palestinian perspectives.

"The overwhelming response to our first call demonstrates both the urgent need for this fund and the incredible creative breadth of Palestinian storytelling happening globally," said Reem Shadid, PFI Executive Board Member. "These nine projects play a pivotal role in the realisation of our mission to create open spaces for Palestinian filmmakers to share their own stories and images, free from the threat of silencing, censorship and erasure."

The first-ever PFF jury brought together an exceptional group of renowned filmmakers and film professionals: Michel Khleifi (Palestine), Marianne Khoury (Egypt), and Rania Stephan (Lebanon).

"As a jury, we were impressed by the quality of the projects we read, which displayed cinematic maturity, expressed the richness of the Palestinian experiences and marked the advent of a new generation of Palestinian filmmakers.”

“In these times of political erasure, it was difficult to prioritize the projects, and we felt that many more were worth supporting. That's why we ultimately chose to make an exception in this first cycle to expand the support to nine projects. The jury was drawn to these final projects for the clarity and integrity of their artistic visions, and for the varied cinematic languages through which they engage Palestinian lived realities. They carry a strong sense of urgency and resonance, grounded in experience yet open to poetic, hybrid, and imaginative forms. Each project shows the potential to travel while remaining intrinsically anchored in Palestinian narratives. We wish all the filmmakers best of luck in finalizing their films."

First Cycle Statistics

The Fall 2025 cycle received 167 submissions from Palestinian filmmakers worldwide, comprising 74 feature- length projects (44%) and 93 short films (56%). Documentary projects represented the majority of feature submissions (77%), while fiction dominated short film applications (55%). Directors identifying as male submitted 60% of applications, with female directors representing 40%.

Selected Projects — Feature Films

Concrete Land by Asmahan Bkerat | Palestine, Jordan | Post-production | Documentary | 90 min
An intimate story of a three-generational Palestinian Bedouin family and their animals on the outskirts of Amman, Jordan, as relentless development reshapes their world. Facing eviction, displacement and an uncertain future, they struggle to survive in an environment that is becoming increasingly unliveable and unrecognizable.

+477 Night by Aisha Alqraan | Palestine | Post-production | Documentary | 90 min
What does it mean to be sitting among your children and grandchildren, your wife and daughters around you, while the children play inside and outside a tent—and suddenly, a single missile weighing a ton or more falls upon you, erasing every detail of life and turning it into ash and blackened land? From here, our documentary film begins—to tell the story of life before the life of that family.

To Make Things Grow by Yasmin Fedda | UK | Development | Documentary | 75 min
Uncovering the story of the visionary agricultural orphanage the Farm School of Deir Amro in Palestine in the 1940s through a collage of archive film, first person testimony, official documents and personal photographs. Pointing towards hope and inspiration to the future, the film explores how the intertwining of land, community and family leave an indelible mark through history.

Three Days and a Third by Rakan Mayasi | Belgium, Palestine, Lebanon | Post-production | Hybrid | 100 min
In a valley veiled by fog and tribal codes, two sisters walk into the night not as daughters, but as offerings— where blood, memory, and silence attempt to keep the fire from spreading.

The Story of the Mountain by Shayma' Awawdeh | Palestine | Development | Hybrid | 60 min
In Hebron, occupied Palestine, I film children in an animation workshop imagining a magical mountain that turns into a giant grandmother who can fulfil their dream of destroying the checkpoint at their neighbourhood’s entrance.

Azziza: In a Cherished Land by Tareq Khalaf | Palestine | Post-production | Documentary | 90 min
Worried about the deteriorating political situation in the West Bank, Aziza asks Tareq to leave Palestine and join the rest of his family in the US, leaving her and his grandmother alone in a state of war. Tareq takes sanctuary in Aziza's garden, observing her seasonal way of living while confronting the difficult decision to leave.

Short Films

Trash by Leen Kanan | Palestine | Production | Fiction | 15 min
At a tense military checkpoint, a Palestinian truck driver's life is threatened when he reaches for his fallen prayer beads, but his small act of courage turns fear into a silent uprising, reclaiming dignity from the routine of oppression.

Issa and the Forest by Rama Heib | Palestine | Development | Animation | 15 min
Issa is a young boy who lives alone on top of a foggy mountain. He spends his days tending to his horse and special tree that he needs to water every day. One extremely foggy morning, he wakes up to a strange sound outside of his hut and finds a mysterious creature crouched in fear. Before Issa could approach it, the creature runs away and disappears within a nearby forest. Issa decides to follow the creature into the forest, not knowing the dire consequences this decision will have on his future.

Where the Light Rests by Islam Tuaima | Palestine | Production | Documentary | 15 min
After Asmaa lost her husband and children in the war, she lives alone in her sister's home, surrounded by their memories and her daily rituals. The film documents her inner journey through pain, loss, and faith, as she tries to understand the meaning of her children's existence after their departure. The light in her life becomes a symbol of clarity and hope—revealing that her loved ones have not left the world but are "sleeping in the light."

About the Palestine Film Fund

The Palestine Film Fund provides financial and sectoral support to Palestinian filmmakers working on short, medium, and feature-length films at various stages of development and production. Priority is given to filmmakers based in Palestine, in lower income countries, or in regions where discrimination against Palestinian voices restricts access to funding opportunities.

The fund's founding partners include IDFA Bertha Fund, International Media Support (IMS), Arab Fund for Arts and Culture (AFAC), Intuitive Pictures and Sawsan Asfari, with additional support from IRIS.

The second call for applications will open in early April 2026 , with selections to be announced in late summer 2026 Full application guidelines are available at www.palestinefilminstitute.org.

About Palestine Film Institute

Palestine Film Institute (PFI) is an independent non-profit organization founded in 2019, currently operated voluntarily by a group of dedicated film professionals. PFI was born out of a collective desire by Palestinian filmmakers to establish an inclusive organization with the shared mission to develop, promote and strengthen the artistic community and film industry in Palestine and in its diaspora, and to preserve Palestinian cinema.

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