Latest news with #CherienDabis
Malay Mail
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Malay Mail
Palestinian film ‘All That's Left of You' wins best film at Malaysia Golden Global Awards
KUALA LUMPUR, July 27 — The Malaysia International Film Festival (MIFFest) held its annual Golden Global Awards (MGGA) ceremony at Zepp KL last night (Saturday) — an evening hosted by Alvin Anthons and Chrystina Ng, and graced by celebrities from both local and international scenes. Over 12 awards were presented to recipients which included Hong Kong screen legend Ti Lung, who proudly took the stage to accept the Lifetime Achievement Award and Indonesian icon Reza Rahadian accepting the Award for Excellent Achievement in Film. The night ended with the poignant Palestinian film All That's Left of You — written, directed, and produced by Cherien Dabis — being honored with the Best Film award, having also earned Best Screenplay earlier in the evening. Grateful for the recognition, the director expressed the significance of the moment. 'It's deeply meaningful because the story is one that remains untold. 'With this recognition, I hope the world will finally see it — that people will begin to recognise it. 'Because ultimately, everyone needs to know the story of what happened to Palestinians — or rather, what hasn't happened—for the past eight decades,' she said. The event also saw many filmmakers receiving recognition for outstanding work — Isabelle Stachtchenko took home Best Cinematography for the film titled Universal Language, while Lotfi Achour won Best Director for the Tunisian film Red Path. International actors and actresses shone on stage as well, with China's Han Haolin winning Best Supporting Actor for My Friend An Delie, Park Mi-Hyeon taking Best Supporting Actress for Winter in Sokcho, Mahmood Bakri receiving Best Actor for To A Land Unknown, and Juli Grabenhenrich Leo earning Best Actress for Paternal Leave. Let's not forget the New Hope Award — a testament to the profound and passionate humane message the film delivers, which was awarded to Red Path, and the Audience Choice Award going to a documentary, Island to Island, directed by Malaysian Lau Kek Huat. It was a memorable night for films, dedicated to MIFFest's mission of honouring movies beyond borders. While the awards ceremony has ended, MIFFest officially closes today, marking another milestone in this chapter of the festival's history. MIFFest president Joanne Goh has already set her sights on the future, expressing excitement for the ninth annual MIFFest, scheduled for 2026.
New Straits Times
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- New Straits Times
#SHOWBIZ: 'All That's Left Of You' comes out tops in MGGA awards
KUALA LUMPUR: All That's Left of You, a poignant Palestinian film, emerged as the top winner, garnering two major awards at the 8th Malaysia Golden Global Awards (MGGA) 2025. The annual awards took place at Zepp KL in Jalan Hang Tuah here last night. It won Best Film, and its director Cherien Dabis won the Best Screenplay award. Another movie about West Asia, Red Path, took home the Best Director award for Lotfi Achour and the New Hope Award. Mahmood Bakri won the Best Actor award for the film To a Land Unknown, and Juli Grabenhenrich won the Best Actress award for Paternal Leave. My Friend An Delie took home the Best Supporting Actor award for Han Haolin. The Best Supporting Actress award went to Park Mi-Hyeon for the film Winter in Sokcho. Isabelle Stachtchenko won Best Cinematography for Universal Language. From Island To Island won the Audience Choice Award. Hong Kong screen legend Thomas Tam, also known as Ti Lung, won the Lifetime Achievement Award. Indonesian screen legend Reza Rahadian won the Award for Excellence Achievement in Film. The 2-hour MGGA 2025, hosted by Alvin Anthons and Chrystina Ng, also saw local celebrities Datuk Hans Isaac, Diana Danielle, Zizan Razak, Abhilash Chandra, Mimi Lana, and Syafiq Kyle serve as award presenters. The 8th MGGA was held in conjunction with the 8th Malaysia International Film Festival from July 19 to 27, and both celebrate excellence in international and local filmmaking.
Broadcast Pro
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Broadcast Pro
The Match Factory announces global deals for Palestinian film ‘All That's Left of You'
The film received support from the Doha Film Institute, OSN+, Media City Qatar and Film Clinic, with the Red Sea Fund serving as an executive producer. The Match Factory has announced a series of international distribution deals for All That's Left of You, the third feature film by Palestinian-American director Cherien Dabis. The emotionally resonant drama, which had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January, is set to make its European debut this July in the Special Screenings section of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. Following its Sundance bow, the film has attracted strong interest from distributors around the world. Deals have been finalised in Italy (Officine UBU), Spain (Karma Films), Benelux (September Film Distribution), Switzerland (Trigon-Film), Turkey (Bir Film), Latin America (Cine Canibal) and Indonesia (PT Falcon), with additional negotiations ongoing. A North American deal is currently in discussion, while distribution rights for Germany and Austria have been secured by X Verleih. In France, Nour Films has acquired the rights. All That's Left of You has received praise for its layered storytelling and emotional depth. The Guardian described it as 'beautifully textured and deeply moving,' noting how it weaves personal and political narratives into a multigenerational chronicle of struggle and resilience. The film follows a Palestinian teenager who becomes entangled in a protest in the West Bank. As he faces confrontation by Israeli soldiers, his mother reflects on the family's history, beginning with his grandfather's displacement from Jaffa in 1948. Through her narration, the film spans three generations, revealing how trauma and resistance are passed down across time. Produced by Thanassis Karathanos, Dabis, Martin Hampel and Karim Amer, with Janine Teerling and Marios Piperides serving as co-producers, the film is a collaborative effort from Pallas Film, Twenty Twenty Vision Filmproduktion, Displaced Pictures and Nooraluna Productions. It is co-produced by AMP Filmworks and ZDF/ARTE. The project has been backed by a wide array of international supporters, including Eurimages – Council of Europe, Mitteldeutsche Medienförderung, Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg, and the Cyprus Deputy Ministry of Culture. Additional support came from OSN+, Media City Qatar, Medan Productions, Baird Films, the National Creative Industries Group, Ten X Group, Film Clinic, the Doha Film Institute and the Red Sea Fund, which served as executive producer. Initially set to commence production in Palestine, the Gaza war forced the crew to evacuate two weeks before the scheduled start date, and production was instead relocated to Cyprus. The film continues to build momentum, offering a powerful portrayal of generational endurance and the enduring hope of a people shaped by displacement and resistance.
Middle East Eye
18-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Middle East Eye
‘You're Palestinian. No one will care': Cherien Dabis on ‘Mo' and making space in Hollywood
"You can't be a filmmaker. You're Palestinian - no one will care." Cherien Dabis is a Palestinian-American filmmaker and actress constantly working to break new ground for Palestinian representation in Hollywood. In 2022, she made TV history as the first Palestinian ever nominated for an Emmy, for her work on 'Only Murders in the Building'. Throughout her career, Cherien has pushed back against one-dimensional portrayals of Arabs and Palestinians - often stereotyped, cast as villains, or erased entirely. Most recently, you may have seen her as Nadia in Netflix's 'Mo', the hit series widely celebrated for its portrayal of the Palestinian experience. In this episode of Real Talk, Cherien opens up about growing up Palestinian in Ohio, the challenges of telling her own story, and the fears that keep many from supporting Palestinian voices in Hollywood. Middle East Eye delivers independent and unrivalled coverage and analysis of the Middle East, North Africa and beyond. To learn more about republishing this content and the associated fees, please fill out this form . More about MEE can be found here .
Express Tribune
28-01-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
Palestinian films to open your eyes
SLOUGH, ENGLAND: With all the horror still unfolding in Gaza despite news of a ceasefire, there is only so much of a picture that mere newsprint can paint. Turn that picture over to the consummate hands of a filmmaker, however, and you will watch that very picture spin into a haunting true-to-life story you are unlikely to forget in a hurry. The beauty of film Conjuring up a gamut of emotions by piercing an arrow to the very humanity of the brutality shrouding the region – the loss of life, assault on dignity, and breakup of families – these Palestinian-centric films will take you to a place where no photographs, headlines, or social media posts can ever hope to. As a mark of the grit that went into bringing them to fruition, they have been in the spotlight at film festivals and gained traction wherever awards are disseminated. Some of these films may not yet have a distributor, but as Palestinian-American director Cherien Dabis pointed out at the Sundance Film Festival, their stories deserve to be told. They are not for the faint of heart, but such films are mandatory watching for whoever wants to gain a deeper understanding of the deep-rooted effects of displaced Palestinian identity. Space does not permit paying homage to them all, so join us as we take a closer look at a select few of the recent projects that understood their assignment, totally and completely. 'All That's Left Of You' One of two Palestinian offerings to premiere at this year's Sundance festival, this Dabis directorial tells the haunting tale of three generations of a family expelled from coastal Jaffa in 1948 and sent to the West Bank. Told in a non-linear fashion, this intimate and epic film zig-zags chronologically, weaving in and out from 1948 to the present day. Not only does Dabis wear the director's cap, she also stars as a mother forced to make a decision no mother should make when her son is wounded in the 1988 uprising. Many of the stories are based on the traumas Dabis and her family personally faced. As per AFP, one harrowing scene shows a father being is humiliated at gunpoint by Israeli soldiers in front of his young child, creating a father-son rift that will never heal. The fact that it is all rooted in reality makes the pain on the screen ever more acute. "I saw my dad humiliated at borders and checkpoints," Dabis told AFP, having frequented the West Bank as a child. "He confronted the soldiers, and they started screaming at him, and I was convinced they were going to kill him." The film does not yet have a theatrical distributor, but whenever it does, Dabis' story promises to be one worth carving out the time for. 'No Other Land' Having earned an Oscar nomination for best documentary feature, No Other Land paints the stark picture of the unlikely alliance between a Palestinian activist on the West Bank and an Israeli journalist. Like others in the land he calls home, Basel Adra, aforementioned activist (and lawyer, journalist, and filmmaker), has been fighting the mass expulsion of his people by Israeli occupation ever since childhood. Through Basel's eyes, we see the inevitable eradication of the villages he has known all his life, demolished gradually by Israeli forces. As everyone in the village is driven further and further away from home, Basel strikes up the unlikeliest of friendships with Yuval (said Israeli journalist), who goes out of his way to support Basel himself. But with Basel enduring a life under military occupation and Yuval being able to move freely, liberated of any restrictions, can this strange new alliance withstand political stand-offs? Driving home the very human aspect of life under occupation, No Other Land is a film created by a Palestinian-Israeli collective of four young activists. It is the celluloid equivalent of creative resistance, seeking long-delayed justice for everyone whose lives have been destroyed by conflict in the region. 'To a Land Unknown' Having been recognised at the Red Sea Film Festival, here is an action-packed drama film that attaches a face and a harrowing back story to the refugees otherwise reduced to just a number. Two displaced Palestinian refugees, Chatila and Reda, living on the fringes of society, crave to acquire a set of fake passports so they can flee Athens and move to Germany. But when Reda loses their hard-earned cash to his dangerous drug addiction, Chatila hatches a foolhardy plan rife with risk and doomed to failure. Rather exquisitely – and painfully – showing what happens when push comes to shove, Chatila suggests they pose as smugglers and take hostages so they can escape their hopeless surroundings before it is too late. It goes without saying that To a Land Unknown is as far removed from feel-good as can be. If the trailer is anything to go by, we are on the receiving end of an unapologetic view of the struggles that befall anyone who has been forced to leave their homeland under extreme circumstances. Directed by the Dubai-born Mahdi Fleifel, To a Land Unknown is tough viewing, but as good an eye-opener as any. 'From Ground Zero' The cumulative effort of 22 Gazan filmmakers, From Ground Zero offers something a little different, but no less gripping. Born against the backdrop of conflict (as is any work of art in the region, you will have doubtless gathered by now), the project was spearheaded by Palestinian director Rashid Masharawi and is a collection of 22 short films totalling nearly two hours and made in Gaza itself. Each film, ranging in length from three to six minutes, presents an intimate portrait of daily life in a region that is otherwise reduced to statistics in newsprint. We are offered a unique insight into the current reality in Gaza, getting a first-hand look at not just the tragedies, but also the moments of resilience banding everyone together. With 22 filmmakers on board, expect to be treated to a rich variety of genres, including fiction, animation documentary, docu-fiction, and experimental cinema. With sorrow, joy, and hope all entwined into one another, Gaza's vibrant artistic scene shines through against all odds. The collection was shortlisted for the Best International Feature Film category at the 2025 Academy Awards but missed out on a nomination. For those who remain on the fence about whether this venture is worth their time, Bowling for Columbine director Michael Moore offered his two cents in conversation with Deadline: "I tell people, do not avoid this film. If your kids are mature and of a certain age, take them to it. This isn't just the blood and gore you witness on cable news. This film is the response of people who are trying to stay alive while being bombarded and shot at."
