30th International Film Festival of Kerala to open with ‘Palestine 36’

Thiruvananthapuram: The 30th International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK), which is set to begin in the capital on December 12 here will screen Annemarie Jacir’s historical drama “Palestine 36” as the opening film of the event.

The film is set around the Palestinian uprising against British colonial rule and Zionism in the 1930s. Its narrative follows Yusuf as he navigates between his quiet rural home and the tense streets of Jerusalem amid the Palestinian revolt against British rule and the influx of Jewish immigrants, reports The Hindu.

The film had bagged the Best Film at the Tokyo International Film Festival and was Palestine’s official entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 98th Academy Awards. Jacir’s Wajib, which won the Golden Crow Pheasant at the IFFK in 2017, will also be screened as part of the films that won Suvarna Chakoram in the early editions of the IFFK, The Hindu report said.

Also, Many films that have been screened globally and have won awards are coming to the film festival this time.

Further, acclaimed filmmaker Abderrahmane Sissako will be presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award of the 30th IFFK. Sissako has many acclaimed works under his name. He made his first short film, “Le Jeu” (The Game), in 1989 as his graduation project. His full-length feature film debut, “Life on Earth” (La Vie Sur Terre), released in 1999, was featured in the Directors’ Fortnight sidebar at the Cannes Film Festival that year, The Hindu reports.

His 2014 release “Timbuktu” was a breakout hit. His film “Waiting for Happiness” earned the prestigious FIPRESCI Prize at the Cannes Film Festival.