Venice (AFP) – Tunisian director Kawthar Ben Hania emphasized before the screening of her film “The Voice of Hind Rajab” on Wednesday at the Venice Film Festival that cinema is “important to give a voice and face” to the Palestinian victims of Gaza. Her work, competing for the Golden Lion award, depicts the last hours in the life of a girl killed in the Gaza Strip by Israeli soldiers’ gunfire.

Ben Hania said at a press conference, “We see that media worldwide portray Gaza casualties as collateral damage. I find this very insulting, which is why cinema, art, and all forms of expression are extremely important to give voice and face to these people.”

The film is based on real audio recordings of the call between Hind Rajab and the Palestinian Red Crescent Society before her death.

The director of “A Tale of Love and Desire,” nominated for the 2024 Oscars, surrounded by actors who collaborated with her, added, “This film was very important to me because when I first heard Hind Rajab’s voice, there was something deeper than just her voice. It was the voice of Gaza screaming for help, and no one can enter.”

Actress Saja Kilani, speaking on behalf of the film’s cast, which received rare warm applause from some attending journalists, said, “Let the echo of Hind Rajab’s voice resonate worldwide.”

This film, competing for the Golden Lion, reinforces the political dimension of the 82nd edition of the festival. One of the most prominent manifestations of this was a demonstration involving thousands on Saturday urging the festival to take a stand against Israel’s actions in the devastated Gaza Strip following the war that began after an unprecedented attack by Hamas on Israel on October 7, 2023.

Festival artistic director Alberto Barbera hoped last July that the film would not cause controversy but expected it to leave a “strong impact on attendees.”

Hind, who was five years old, was found by her family inside a bullet-riddled car 12 days after her death along with the bodies of six relatives in the Tel al-Hawa area southwest of Gaza City.

Forensic Architecture estimated that the Israeli army fired 335 bullets at the car where Hind spent hours on the phone terrified amid gunfire, pleading with Red Crescent paramedics to come save her before she died on January 29, 2024.

Kawthar Ben Hania wrote on her Instagram account that she accidentally heard parts of the distress calls made by Hind Rajab and quickly contacted the Red Crescent.

The 48-year-old French-Tunisian director said, “I spoke at length with Hind’s mother and with the people on the other end of the line who tried to help her. I listened, cried, and wrote.”

The 90-minute film is set in the Red Crescent call center, portraying the tension between the desire to save the child’s life and the need to respect emergency protocols and avoid endangering rescuers.

The director, who likes to blur the lines between reality and fiction in her works, uses the real phone recordings of Hind but relies on acted scenes depicting what happened in the call center, featuring exclusively Palestinian actors.

“The Voice of Hind Rajab” is supported by major stars such as actors Brad Pitt, Joaquin Phoenix, Rooney Mara, and directors Alfonso Cuarón and Jonathan Glazer, whose names appear among the executive producers. The film’s press team told AFP that these stars “attended the film and expressed admiration for it.”

Hind Rajab’s mother, Wissam Hamada, told AFP by phone from Gaza City, “I hope the voice of Gaza reaches out and this destructive war stops, and that this film will help save the other children of Gaza.”

The 29-year-old woman, who lives with her five-year-old son and lost her husband a year ago, added, “Hind is just one case among thousands. Why hasn’t the world moved to save the other mothers and children? Why hasn’t the world moved for the rest of Gaza?!”

In response to AFP’s question, the Israeli army, which has never announced an official investigation into this tragedy, said the circumstances of the girl’s death are still “under review.”

After the Venice screening on Wednesday, the film will be shown at festivals in Toronto, London, San Sebastián, and Busan, and has started to circulate as an Oscar contender.

The war broke out after a Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to AFP’s count based on official Israeli data.

Among 251 people taken hostage and transferred to Gaza during the attack, 47 remain in the territory; the army said 25 of them have died.

Israeli attacks and military operations in Gaza have killed at least 63,633 people, mostly civilians, according to the latest figures from the Hamas-run Ministry of Health, which the United Nations considers reliable.