Film about Gaza stuns Venice: 25 minutes of applause

The documentary film "NAZA" about the war in Gaza, directed by Israeli filmmakers Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor, received a nearly 25-minute standing ovation from the audience at the Venice International Film Festival. The 80-minute picture was screened in the festival's main competition. This was reported by Reuters.

The film premiered to the public on September 10. The 24.5-minute ovation that followed its screening was recorded as the longest standing ovation in the history of the Venice Film Festival.

"NAZA" was created on the basis of nearly three years of investigative journalism. It utilizes anonymous testimonies from 24 military personnel and intelligence officers who served in the Israeli army and intelligence system. The identities of the interviewees were kept secret, and some of them were included in the film with altered voices and appearances.

The picture also pays special attention to an artificial intelligence-powered system called "Lavender". According to sources interviewed in the film, the system was used to identify potential targets by analyzing data on phone calls, people's movements, and communications in Gaza.

The film "NAZA" is the follow-up project to Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor's previous picture "No Other Land". That film won the Oscar for "Best Documentary Feature" in 2025.