Debut film highlights Palestinian struggles

Oscar-nominated and BAFTA award-winning Palestinian-British filmmaker Farah Nabulsi is calling for global empathy for Palestinians through her debut feature film, The Teacher.

In an interview with Anadolu, Nabulsi said her goal is to challenge audiences to reflect on the hardships Palestinians face under occupation. "I really want people to ask themselves: Is this a reality they would accept for themselves? And if it isn't, why have Palestinians been expected to?"

Nabulsi shared her experiences filming The Teacher, which premiered at the Toronto Film Festival on September 9, 2023.

"Given the current reality in Palestine, as Israel conducts a genocide in Gaza, I hope this film offers a deeper human context to that reality. The sociopolitical is important but often missing from the discourse."

Born and raised in the UK, Nabulsi said a visit to Palestine a decade ago profoundly changed her perspective.

"Despite thinking I knew about the injustice and discrimination, witnessing it firsthand—checkpoints, demolished homes, detained children—was shocking," she recounted.

"This injustice hit me deeply," she continued, explaining that storytelling became her way to process and respond.

Nabulsi said the script for The Teacher was shaped by her conversations with Palestinians and her observations during her time in Palestine. The film addresses settler violence, home demolitions, and the treatment of children in military courts.

Referring to a 2011 exchange where an Israeli soldier was released by Hamas in return for over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners, Nabulsi highlighted the disparity in the perceived value of human life.

"It's this idea that Palestinian lives are not valued like Israeli Jewish lives. That imbalance inspired the story," she said. Andalou