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"The Voice of Hind Rajab," a film about the five-year-old Palestinian child killed in Gaza, received a 24-minute standing ovation at its premiere in competition at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival.
Director Kaouther Ben Hania attended the screening alongside a group of Hollywood luminaries and producers who recently joined the project as executive producers.
Among them were Joaquin Phoenix and Rooney Mara, who embraced the cast following the premiere.
The film recounts the final, frantic phone call of Rajab, the real-life tragedy of January 2024, when six-year-old Rajab was killed by Israeli forces along with several relatives as they attempted to flee Gaza City in a car.
Medics tried for hours to save her, but it was too late.
After 12 days of lost contact, the bodies of Palestinian girl Rajab and several members of her family were found in their car in Gaza’s Tal al-Hawa neighborhood, a tragic reminder of the toll of the ongoing conflict.
The film shows the real voice recordings between Rajab and Red Crescent volunteers who tried to keep her on the line, desperately attempting to send help.
The Israeli military has not announced a formal investigation into the case.
The emotional reception at the premiere has many considering the film a frontrunner for the Golden Lion.
The film will make its North American debut at the Toronto International Film Festival. It is then set to screen at the San Sebastián, Busan and London film festivals this fall.
Saja Al-Kilani, the lead actress of The Voice of Rajab, told reporters in a statement she read on behalf of the entire cast and crew, “Hind’s story carries the weight of an entire nation.”
Al-Kilani began her speech with a simple question: “Isn’t it enough?” she asked.
She emphasized that it is time to put an end to the mass killings, starvation, dehumanization, destruction and the ongoing occupation.
She stressed that this film is not a matter of opinion or fantasy; it is “anchored in truth,” she stated.
She said that Hind’s story carries the weight of an entire people and that her voice is one among tens of thousands of children killed in Gaza over the past two years alone.
"And these are only the voices we know" She continued . Behind every number is a story that never got to be told. Her story is about a child crying out, "Save me."
Al-Kilani concluded her speech by emphasizing, “The real question is, how have we allowed a child to beg for her life? No one can live in peace while even one child is forced to plead for survival. Let Hind Rajab’s voice echo around the world.”
In a statement, the mother of the late child Rajab, Wissam Hamadeh, expressed her gratitude to everyone who helped bring her daughter’s voice to the world by sharing her life story in a film at the Venice Film Festival.
Hind’s mother thanked director Kaouther Ben Hania, saying the film that captured Hind’s voice has “immortalized her memory” and allowed the whole world to hear her voice.
However, she admitted that she could not watch the film herself due to the emotional difficulty, saying, “I can’t even hear my daughter’s voice because it reminds me of the moment I was powerless to save her.”
The mother further highlighted the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, emphasizing that residents face death moment by moment, confined to limited spaces, with fear ever-present.
She added that she has not left the northern Gaza Strip since the onset of the war and lives in constant fear for the safety of her only surviving son, Ziad.
Wissam describes the grim reality, saying that families now sleep in separate rooms to avoid everyone being killed at once or in a single room so they can die together.
“Even the idea of a sole survivor has become a nightmare,” she added with sorrow.
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