Little Palestine, Diary of a Siege

by Abdallah Al-Khatib
Abdallah Al-Khatib's debut film depicts life in Yarmouk, the largest Palestinian refugee camp in the world, amid the Syrian revolution.
2021  ·  1h29m  ·  France, Lebanon, Qatar
Arabic
English, French subs
About the Film

In his directorial debut, LITTLE PALESTINE, DIARY OF A SIEGE, filmmaker Abdallah Al-Khatib offers a glimpse into the daily life of the residents of Yarmouk, the largest Palestinian refugee camp in the world.

Home to thousands of Palestinians, Yarmouk was seized in 2015 by ISIS/Daesh in alliance with al-Nousra. Syrian government forces retaliated to the siege with indiscriminate shelling of the camp that provoked widespread outcry against the loss of civilian lives and the destruction of the refugee camp. Yarmouk was cut off from electricity, leaving Palestinian refugees in an even more vulnerable and embattled state.

With the help of his friends, Al-Khatib portrays the ordinary lives of Yarmouk’s residents in the years leading up to the siege, as they persevere with dignity, love and hope amid a never-ending state of war.

Cinema Politica is the proud distributor of Little Palestine, Diary of a Siege. Visit our distribution catalog to learn more about the licensing options.
Upcoming Screenings

Stay tuned for upcoming screenings!

Festivals and Awards
2023
Rencontres Internationales du Documentaire de Montréal, Focus Bidayyat Section
2022
Toronto Palestine Film Festival, Official Selection
2022
Cinéma sous les étoiles, Official Selection
2022
Festival cinéma du monde de Sherbrooke, Official Selection
2021
Guanajuato International Film Festival, Best International Documentary Feature
2021
Filmfest Hamburg, Commerzbank Audience Award
2021
Vancouver International Film Festival , Impact Audience Award
2021
Festival de Cinéma en ville!, Quebec City, Jury Prize: International Competition
2021
Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival, Ogawa Shinsuke Prize
2021
Mostra – São Paulo IFF, Honorable Jury Mention
2021
Palestine Cinema Days, Palestinian Sunbird Award for Best Documentary
2021
War on Screen Film Festival, Châlons-en-Champagne, Press Jury Award
2021
International Film Festival Innsbruck (IFFI), Best Film: Documentary Competition
2021
Visions du Réel, Montreal, Interreligious Award
2021
São Paulo International Film Festival, New Directors Competition
2021
Torino Film Festival, Gandhi's Glasses Award
2021
ACID Cannes, Selected for the ACID (Association for the Distribution of Independent Cinema) programme
2021
Visions du Réel, Montreal, World Premiere
In the Press
Review
Vladan PetkovicCineuropa
Review
Namrata JoshiNational Herald India
Review
Hamid DabashiMiddle East Eye
Press Announcement
Festival cinéma du monde de Sherbrooke
Director
Abdallah Al-Khatib
Writer
Abdallah Al-Khatib
Editor
Qutaiba Barhamji
Artistic Advisor
Ahmad Amro
Cinematography
Basel Abdullah, Abdallah Al-Khatib, Majd M.A. Almassri, Yahya Diaa, Mohamad R.M. Hamid, Qusai Abu Qasem, Mouayad Zaghmout
Sound design and mix
Pierre Armand
Sound editing mix studio
Studio Lemon
Colour grading
Michael Derrosset
Producers
Mohammad Ali Atassi, Jean-Laurent Csinidis
Production companies
Bidayyat for Audiovisual Arts, Films de Force Majeure
Production manager
Nora Bertone
Film Related
About the Director

Abdallah Al-Khatib

Abdallah Al-Khatib was born in 1989 in Yarmouk. He studied sociology at the University of Damascus. Before the revolution, he worked for the UN as coordinator of activities and volunteers. He created the humanitarian aid association Wataad, with several friends, which carried out dozens of projects in several regions of Syria, and in particular in Yarmouk. He participated in several documentary films relating the life of the Yarmouk camp, notably being one of the cameramen of 194. Us Children of the Camp which premiered at Visions du Réel in 2017. The German magazine Peace Green identified him as one of the 2014 “peacemakers”. In Sweden, he received the Per Anger Human Rights Award in 2016. Abdallah currently lives in Germany, where he was recently granted refugee status.

 

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