No for Genocide: 1,200 Film Figures to Boycott ’Israel’

By Staff, Agencies

The Guardian British daily reported that hundreds of actors, directors, and film workers have pledged not to collaborate with “Israeli” cultural institutions they say are complicit in “genocide and apartheid against the Palestinian people.”

“As film-makers, actors, film industry workers, and institutions, we recognize the power of cinema to shape perceptions,” the statement reads. “In this urgent moment of crisis, where many of our governments are enabling the carnage in Gaza, we must do everything we can to address complicity in that unrelenting horror.”

The initiative has drawn more than 1,200 signatories, including directors Yorgos Lanthimos, Ava DuVernay, Asif Kapadia, Boots Riley, and Joshua Oppenheimer. Prominent actors such as Olivia Colman, Mark Ruffalo, Tilda Swinton, Javier Bardem, Ayo Edebiri, Riz Ahmed, Josh O’Connor, Cynthia Nixon, Julie Christie, Ilana Glazer, Rebecca Hall, Aimee Lou Wood, and Debra Winger also backed the call.

The pledge cites inspiration from the cultural boycott that helped end apartheid in South Africa.

Signatories commit to avoiding screenings, appearances, or cooperation with institutions, including festivals, cinemas, broadcasters, and production companies, that they deem complicit. Examples of complicity include “whitewashing or justifying genocide and apartheid, and/or partnering with the government committing them.”

“We answer the call of Palestinian film-makers, who have urged the international film industry to refuse silence, racism, and dehumanization, as well as to ‘do everything humanly possible’ to end complicity in their oppression,” the statement continues.

The campaign is spearheaded by Film Workers for Palestine. Among those who joined is screenwriter David Farr, who linked his stance to his own family history. “As the descendant of Holocaust survivors, I am distressed and enraged by the actions of the ‘Israeli state’,” he said. “In this context, I cannot support my work being published or performed in ‘Israel’. The cultural boycott was significant in South Africa. It will be significant this time and, in my view, should be supported by all artists of conscience.”

An FAQ accompanying the pledge identifies "Israel’s" leading festivals, including the “Jerusalem Film Festival, Haifa International Film Festival, Docaviv, and TLVFest”, as examples of institutions tied to the occupation entity.

It states that most “Israeli” film production and distribution companies “have never endorsed the full, internationally recognized rights of the Palestinian people.”

The campaign comes amid a surge of industry activism against the ongoing “Israeli” genocide in Gaza. Earlier this summer, Joaquin Phoenix, Pedro Pascal, Ralph Fiennes, and Guillermo del Toro were among hundreds who signed an open letter criticizing the film industry’s silence.

Many of those figures also urged SAG-AFTRA last year to protect members from blacklisting over their views on Palestine. In Norway, the Actors’ Equity Association has since advised members to avoid working with certain Israeli cultural institutions.