‘The Burden Is Too Much To Carry’: Venice Film Festival Faces Backlash As Filmmakers Demand Stand On Palestine, Controversy Explained

A big chunk of Italy’s film scene, think Marco Bellocchio, Matteo Garrone, Alice Rohrwacher, and a whole roster of heavy-hitters just dropped a public letter calling out the Venice Film Festival. 

They want the festival to stop sitting on the fence and actually take a strong stand for Palestine.

Top Filmmakers Urge Venice Film Festival To Take A Stand For Palestine

These folks are rolling under the V4P (Venice4Palestine) banner, and over the weekend, they went public with an open letter. In it, they call on the Venice Biennale (which runs the festival) and its indie sections like Giornate degli Autori and International Critics’ Week to quit playing it safe and actually denounce what they call “the ongoing genocide in Gaza and the ethnic cleansing across Palestine carried out by the Israeli government and army.”

And the timing? Not coincidental—the festival’s about to kick off.

The letter pulls zero punches. It starts, “Stop the clocks, turn off the stars,” and goes on to say, “The burden is too much to carry on living as before.”

They point out that for almost two years, no one can claim ignorance about what’s been happening in Gaza and the West Bank. “No one will ever be able to say: ‘I couldn’t know, I couldn’t imagine, I couldn’t believe,’” the writers warn. 

And it’s not just Italian voices. Abel Ferrara, Ken Loach, French director Audrey Diwan (she snagged the Golden Lion for “The Happening”), and Palestinian filmmakers Arab Nasser and Tarzan Nasser (who just won at Cannes) are all on board.

Venice Film Festival Responds After Open Letter On Palestine Sparks Debate

Venice Biennale didn’t waste time firing back with a statement. They claim the festival’s always been a place for tough conversations and social awareness.

To prove it, they point to films like “The Voice of Hind Rajab” by Kaouther Ben Hania, competing this year. That film? It’s about a five-year-old Palestinian girl found dead in Gaza after being stranded in a car attacked by Israeli forces. The director even used the real phone call recordings between the girl and her mom. Venice’s artistic director looked visibly shaken when introducing it.

The Biennale also reminded everyone that last year’s lineup included “Of Dogs and Men” by Israeli director Dani Rosenberg, which was shot after the October 7 Hamas attack. That film follows a teenager searching for her lost dog in the aftermath of the violence.