Cherien Dabis on Telling a Multigenerational Story of the Nakba
Cherien Dabis spoke about her personal connection to telling stories about the Nakba during a talk at the Red Sea International Film Festival, describing it not simply as a historical event, but as a trauma that continues to shape Palestinian lives.
Her own family’s experiences became an important part of her filmmaking journey, inspiring her to tell a multigenerational story that could reflect the collective nature of the trauma and its impact across generations.
Dabis also reflected on how her experience as both a director and actor informs the way she works, from building a supportive crew to directing other actors while performing in the same scene.
Ultimately, she hopes audiences connect with the story beyond its political context — seeing a family navigating decades of turmoil and personal loss, and the role of love in helping people endure it.
From the interview
Full transcript · English
I wanted to make a film about the Nakba, and of course the Nakba has never ended. To do any justice to telling the story of the Nakba, I have to, in a way, tell a multi-generational story, you know? And the Nakba is a collective trauma for all Palestinians, and so I really wanted to look at that collective trauma. I wanted to look at that passage of trauma. And I was inspired by my own family, the multiple generations of my own family, and how our identities formed, like, in relationship to each other or in opposition to each other, and in relationship to what was happening in Palestine. And I didn't want to tell it in a linear fashion. I wanted to drop people right in the middle of the action, and then explain how we got there. Really tell the story of how we got there, how we became refugees and ended up in the refugee camp, and how this refugee camp, you know, teenager, ends up at this protest in the midst of this moment of violence. You know, to really start with this iconic image that we've all seen of the first intifada. You know, when you're directing and acting, you really need to be surrounded by crew who know what you want, and really have your back, and are willing to, you know, keep their eye on you, and give you very honest feedback. So, I think it really shaped my approach in hiring people. And, of course, you have to carve in time to watch playback, because as a director, you know, you have to be able to kind of go back, and you don't watch necessarily every take, but you want to watch the takes that felt good. So, yeah, there are some things you have to work out, like your approach is a little bit different. You know, you have to have stand-ins so that you can see the action, someone who is really good at kind of mimicking the action of the actors. Some things take a little bit of extra time, but then some things are a bit streamlined when you're acting in the scene. You know, you can also direct other actors from within the scene. I mean, first, I will say I think the film is so universal in its story in that it's really about a family and how they survive decades of political turmoil and personal loss. And really what's left of them at the end of the day, you know, all that's left of us, all that's left of you, all that's left of us is love at the end of the day. You know, and that's really what I want people to take away from this film, is the way that we survive these kinds of events. You know, and that's really what I want people to take away from this film.
