Gaza film produced by Brad Pitt grabs attention at Venice Festival

A docudrama co-produced by Brad Pitt and Joaquin Phoenix about a Palestinian girl killed in the Gaza Strip has caused a stir at the Venice Film Festival.

The film, "The Voice of Hind Rajab," by Tunisian director Kaouther Ben Hania, is part of the competition and was scheduled to premiere on Wednesday.

It recounts the last moments in the life of Palestinian girl Hind Rajab in the Gaza Strip. She died in January 2024 while her family was attempting to flee.

The film, in line with several independent investigations, suggest that she and members of her family were killed by Israeli forces.

The central element of the film is a genuine telephone recording. While the girl was trapped in the already shot-up car among her dead family members, she spent around three hours on the phone with volunteers from the Palestinian Red Crescent, begging for help.

The rescue workers, who set off after hours of coordination, were themselves killed on the way. Hind was found dead 12 days later, along with her family and the paramedics.

The screening of "The Voice of Hind Rajab" will be followed by the premiere of "In The Hand of Dante," a historical crime thriller by Jewish-American director Julian Schnabel.

Two of its stars, Israel's Gal Gadot and Britain's Gerard Butler, were criticized by pro-Palestinian activists before the start of the festival for their support of Israel.

Gadot, who did military service in Israel, expressed solidarity with the Israeli victims of the attack by the Palestinian resistance organization Hamas on October 7, 2023, and spoke out in favour of the release of the Israeli hostages.

Director Schnabel said before the premiere: "I think there is no reason to boycott artists. I chose these actors for their acting skills, and they did an extraordinary job."

When asked, he declined to comment on Hind Rajab and the debate about the Gaza war at the festival.