Separately, hundreds of Italian and international filmmakers signed an open letter ahead of the festival calling on Venice organizers to take a “clear and unambiguous stand” against the Jewish State.

By Aaron Sull, Jewish Breaking News

Dozens of protesters assembled in front of Venice’s famous red carpet Wednesday morning, unveiling a “Free Palestine. Stop the Genocide” banner as the 82nd edition of the film festival kicked off.

Around 10 a.m., just hours before opening night festivities, demonstrators waved Palestinian flags and repeatedly chanted “Free Palestine” and “Stop the Genocide.”

Spokespeople briefly addressed the assembled press in Italian before closing their demonstration with “From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be Free.”

Behind the protest stands a broad coalition spanning Italian trade unions, anti-racist and feminist groups, student collectives, environmental activists, and religious organizations.

International networks, including Extinction Rebellion and Refugees Welcome joined the effort, alongside film industry associations representing editors, casting directors, and technicians’ guilds.

Organizers are demanding that Venice festival leadership take a public stance opposing what they term “the genocide in Palestine perpetrated by Israel” and that they “denounce the complicity of Western governments.”

A larger march is planned for Saturday at 5 p.m. local time. Activists will gather at the Santa Maria Elisabetta water bus stop on the Lido before marching across the island to the festival red carpet in what organizers call “a symbolic and political choice, aimed at breaking the silence and turning the spotlight of the festival on Palestine.”

Separately, hundreds of Italian and international filmmakers signed an open letter ahead of the festival calling on Venice organizers to take a “clear and unambiguous stand” against the Jewish State.

In the letter, signatories accused the Israeli government and military of carrying out genocide in Gaza and urged the festival to avoid becoming “a sad and empty showcase” by instead providing “a place of dialogue, active participation, and resistance, as it has been in the past.”

Festival organizers pushed back in their response, stating that they “have always been, throughout their history, places of open discussion and sensitivity to all the most pressing issues facing society and the world. The evidence of this is, first and foremost, the works that are being presented.”

Paul Laverty, longtime screenwriter for Ken Loach and a signatory to the Venice letter, was arrested Monday during a pro-Hamas protest in Scotland.

According to The Guardian, Laverty faces charges for “showing support for a proscribed organization” after wearing a T-shirt supporting Palestine Action during a protest outside a police station.

Britain designated Palestine Action as a terrorist organization on July 5 under the U.K.’s Terrorism Act.

Venice will screen “The Voice of Hind Rajab” in competition this year—a propaganda drama from Tunisian director Kaouther Ben Hania about the killing of a 5-year-old Arab girl by Israeli forces in Gaza in 2024.

Hollywood figures including Brad Pitt, Joaquin Phoenix, Rooney Mara, and Oscar-winning directors Jonathan Glazer and Alfonso Cuarón have all signed on as executive producers.

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More than 1,500 Italian cinema professionals demanded Israel supporters be banned from the prestigious event.

By World Israel News Staff

Israeli actress Gal Gadot will not appear at the upcoming 82nd annual Venice Film Festival after pro-Palestinian activists vowed to turn the focus of the event to the “genocide” in Gaza and Italian film professionals demanded that supporters of Israel be banned from participating.

Italian newspaper La Repubblica reported that Gadot will skip the prestigious festival, where her new film, In the Hands of Dante, is scheduled to be screened.

One anti-Israel initiative, dubbed Venice4Palestine, gathered signatures from more than 1,500 Italian directors, actors, screenwriters, and other industry workers.

The group urged the Venice Film Festival “to be more courageous and clear in condemning the ongoing genocide in Gaza and the ethnic cleansing across Palestine carried out by the Israeli government and army.”

The open letter specifically demanded that Gadot be barred from the event along with her co-star, Scottish actor Gerard Butler. Butler has publicly expressed support for Israel.

Local pro-Palestinian organizations said they intended to shift the focus of the festival away from films and celebrities and instead highlight alleged Israeli war crimes in Gaza.

The groups charged that the “genocide is there for all to see,” claiming that the Israeli army is massacring Gazan civilians.

The statement said that “the denial of humanitarian aid, water and food is a strategy of genocide.”

Speaking at an Anti-Defamation League event in New York earlier this year, Gadot spoke out about personal attacks against her because of her Jewish heritage and Israeli identity.

“My name is Gal, and I’m Jewish. Isn’t it crazy that just saying that — just expressing such a simple fact about who I am — feels like a controversial statement? But, sadly, this is where we’re at today,” Gadot said.

“This is a time when many of us in the Jewish community have had to find our voice and confront the hatred against us, even if it’s extremely uncomfortable,” she added.

“That’s been the case for all of us in every walk of life, in every profession, including my own.”

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Sarah Friedland received an award at the Venice Film Festival and stated, ‘I stand in solidarity with the people of Palestine in their struggle for liberation.’

Jewish filmmaker Sarah Friedland accepts award at the Venice Film festival.

“I am accepting this award on the 336th day of Israel’s genocide in Gaza and 76th year of occupation…I stand in solidarity with the people of Palestine in their struggle for liberation.” pic.twitter.com/LYlTSRxnLm

— Samira Mohyeddin سمیرا (@SMohyeddin) September 8, 2024

The post WATCH: Jewish film director accepts award on ‘the 336th day of Israel’s genocide in Gaza’ appeared first on World Israel News.

Lebanese director Ziad Doueiri won a prize at the Venice Film Festival for his new movie, “The Insult,” but was unpleasantly surprised upon his return to Beirut’s airport.

The post WATCH: Award-winning Lebanese director arrested for filming in Israel appeared first on World Israel News.