Walsall Pact

Israel's Reel Extremism

August 2024 •English

An examination of Israel and its society after many months of war, seen initially through the prism of viral social media posts - and exclusive interviews with the soldiers behind them. These posts, some shared millions of times, show soldiers humiliating bound Palestinians, ransacking their homes, joking as they detonate schools and whole districts, and laughing as they launch high explosive ordnance into densely-packed areas. The award-winning team behind this Basement Films production traveled to Israel to interview some of these soldiers, who proudly defended themselves and their videos, some expressing callous disregard for Palestinians in Gaza. Through additional interviews with Israeli radical groups, politicians, and media figures, the film reveals Israeli Jewish society in the aftermath of October 7th, gripped by a vengeance and hate that puts into question any possibility for peace.

Palestine Will Win

January 1969 •French

“Palestine Vaincra (Palestine Will Win)" is regarded as the first French documentary film made in support of the Palestinian liberation movement. Shot in 1969 by Jean-Pierre OLIVIER de SARDAN in a student dorm, the film blends historical testimonies by Palestinians, photographs, stock footage, maps, and music. The documentary centers on the 1968 Battle of Karameh, while also tracing the complex story of the past five decades of Palestinian resistance against oppression and colonialism.

Tell Them We Are Rising: The Story of Black Colleges and Universities

January 2017 •English

A haven for Black intellectuals, artists and revolutionaries—and path of promise toward the American dream—Black colleges and universities have educated the architects of freedom movements and cultivated leaders in every field. They have been unapologetically Black for 150 years. For the first time ever, their story is told.

X-Mission

Invalid date •English

X-Mission explores the logic of the refugee camp as one of the oldest extra-territorial zones. Taking the Palestinian refugee camp as a case in point, the video engages with the different discourses — legal, symbolic, urban, historical — that give meaning to this exceptional space.

Waltz with Bashir

June 2008 •Hebrew

An Israeli film director interviews fellow veterans of the 1982 invasion of Lebanon to reconstruct his own memories of his term of service in that conflict.

Beyond the Frontlines: Resistance and Resilience in Palestine

November 2017 •French

Synonymous With

April 2021 •English

A student's increasingly intimate line of questioning causes his interview with a local horror host to take a vulnerable turn.

Acadia Acadia?!?

May 1971 •French

In the late 1960s, with the triumph of bilingualism and biculturalism, New Brunswick's Université de Moncton became the setting for the awakening of Acadian nationalism after centuries of defeatism and resignation. Although 40% of the province's population spoke French, they had been unable to make their voices heard. The movement started with students-sit-ins, demonstrations against Parliament, run-ins with the police - and soon spread to a majority of Acadians. The film captures the behind-the-scenes action and the students' determination to bring about change. An invaluable document of the rebirth of a people.

Gaza Fights for Freedom

June 2019 •English

Gaza Fights for Freedom depicts the ongoing Great March of Return protests in the Gaza Strip, occupied Palestine, that began in 2018.

War Photographer

November 2001 •English

Documentary about war photographer James Nachtwey, considered by many the greatest war photographer ever.

Mea Culpa

February 2024 •English

Lies and guilt are at the core of Patrick’s relationship with his mother Randa. Over the years, he has collected their audio messages and video calls, transforming them into a portrait of her life in Lebanon and his own in Belgium. This very intimate yet social piece reveals a complex relationship marked by the distance between the two characters and shows what one may experience as a homosexual migrant. By turns moving, provocative, and hilarious, Mea Culpa questions the links between national and sexual identities for a young Palestinian migrant.

The Truth Behind UC Berkeley's Pro-Palestine Protests: Journey Tellers in the World

April 2024 •English

Universities across the US are erupting with protests and encampments in support of Palestine. This is unlike anything humanity has in recent history. Why are students doing this? What's the big deal? And why now? The Journey Tellers team set out to answer these questions and more at the UC Berkeley Free Palestine Encampment, on the first day it was launched in the University of California, Berkeley.

The Thinnest Line

June 2022 •Catalan

A fist-person story of the director of the documentary, who talks about the loneliness that entails living with an eating disorder and her vision now thar she is entering into adulthood.

Lyd

August 2023 •Arabic

A sci-fi documentary that follows the rise and fall of Lyd — a 5,000-year-old metropolis that was once a bustling Palestinian town until it was conquered when the State of Israel was established in 1948. As the film unfolds, a chorus of characters creates a tapestry of the Palestinian experience of this city and the trauma left by the massacre and expulsion.

Four Years of Solitude

June 2023 •English

A written testimony by co-director Jin Ryoo on his experience preparing for Korean compulsory military service is juxtaposed with images of an empty UCSD campus, the desolate construction sites sprawling off of it, and the Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial.

Occupation 101: Voices of the Silenced Majority

March 2006 •English

A thought-provoking documentary on the current and historical causes of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and U.S. political involvement.

Hoop Dreams

September 1994 •English

Every school day, African-American teenagers William Gates and Arthur Agee travel 90 minutes each way from inner-city Chicago to St. Joseph High School in Westchester, Illinois, a predominately white suburban school well-known for the excellence of its basketball program. Gates and Agee dream of NBA stardom, and with the support of their close-knit families, they battle the social and physical obstacles that stand in their way. This acclaimed documentary was shot over the course of five years.

It's Bisan from Gaza and I'm Still Alive

November 2023 •Arabic

Bisan Owda, journalist and influencer collaborator of the media AJ+, is at the forefront of reporting by filming with her phone, the daily life of Palestinians to the world since October 7, 2023, the start of the war and devastation from Gaza. Owda's storytelling style and resilience have captured international attention, with his work widely covered by international media. She received an Emmy Award in 2024 for her outstanding coverage of the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

Here and Elsewhere

September 1976 •French

Here and Elsewhere takes its name from the contrasting footage it shows of the fedayeen and of a French family watching television at home. Originally shot by the Dziga Vertov Group as a film on Palestinian freedom fighters, Godard later reworked the material alongside Anne-Marie Miéville.

West of the Jordan River

March 2018 •English

Amos Gitai returns to the occupied territories for the first time since his 1982 documentary FIELD DIARY. WEST OF THE JORDAN RIVER describes the efforts of citizens, Israelis and Palestinians, who are trying to overcome the consequences of occupation. Gitai's film shows the human ties woven by the military, human rights activists, journalists, mourning mothers and even Jewish settlers. Faced with the failure of politics to solve the occupation issue, these men and women rise and act in the name of their civic consciousness. This human energy is a proposal for long overdue change.