Mohannad Al-Bakri dreams “of never making another political film” at Carthage

After more than 20 years, JANIN JENIN screened in the presence of its director at the 35th Carthage International Film Festival to wide audience acclaim.

Sticking around for a post-screening Q&A, Al-Bakri talked about how not much has changed in the two decades between his two documentaries while sharing his hopes and dreams for the future.

“I dream of the Zionist Project ending with the establishment of a free, independent, and democratic Palestinian state, and that I no longer have to make films like these. I dream of stopping the production of political films, not out of fear, but out of love for life and appreciation of the value of human beings in their existence as individuals who deserve films about love, beauty, philosophy, and other things beyond conflict. We were not created just to fight and die; we love life, if we can only find a way to live it,” he said.

The Palestinian documentary JANIN JENIN is a spiritual sequel to Mohannad Al-Bakri’s 2002 documentary JENIN which was set in April 2002, when the Israeli army occupied the West Bank and blocked access to Jenin Refugee Camp. Determined to give voice to those silenced by the media ban, Mohammed Bakri entered to interview residents. In JANIN JENIN, Al-Bakri returns to the camp more than 20 years later to see what has changed.