The signatories include Actors Aimee Lou Wood, Susan Sarandon, Mark Ruffalo, Riz Ahmed and Javier Bardem, as well as screenwriters and directors Ken Loach, Yorgos Lanthimos, Asif Cadadia, Ava DuverNay, Emma Seligman, Boots Riley, Adam McKay and Joshua Oppenheimer. Signatures under the letter were made by many awarded artists, including Oscar winners, BAFTA awards, Emma, awards awarded at festivals in Cannes, Berlin and Venice.
The declaration obliges the creators to not be entitled to films, not participate in events and to resign from cooperation with institutions related to the film industry, whose action consists in “justifying the genocide (Palestinian nation) or cooperation with the government (Israeli) who committed them.” The boycott of Western artists affected, among others International Film Festivals in Jerusalem and Hajf.
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“The vast majority of Israeli companies dealing with the production and distribution of films, sales agents, cinemas and other film institutions have never supported the full, recognized by the international community of the rights of the Palestinian nation” – we read in a statement. As emphasized in the document, the commitment does not prohibit film creators to cooperate with Israel's citizens.
Appeal of Palestinian filmmakers to reject silence
The statement reads that the letter of artists and employees of the film industry is a response to the appeal of Palestinian filmmakers who asked “the international film industry to reject silence, racism and dehumanization, as well as to do everything in human power” to put an end to the suffering of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
The signatories admitted that they were inspired by the attitude of filmmakers from 1987 to write a letter, who refused to display their films in South Africa during the apartheid.
As the Guardian daily noted, this is one of the most famous cultural boycott initiatives, announced against Israel from the beginning of the attack on the Gaza Strip, which began in October 2023. A year ago, a similar declaration was signed by over 1,000 writers, including Sally Rooney and Arundhati Roy.
