DW Finds 'Obstacles' in Films, Not Occupation
DW's piece on film 'obstacles' manages a remarkable feat of moral equivalence, treating the challenges faced by filmmakers from an occupying power and an occupied people as roughly equivalent. They cite logistical and funding issues, as if a checkpoint or siege doesn't quite factor into a Palestinian director's budget. It's a classic case of 'both sides' journalism, where the distinct experiences
of settler and colonized are melted into a generic, palatable 'conflict.' One might wonder if the 'obstacles' mentioned for Palestinian films include navigating Israeli military permits to shoot in their own homeland, or perhaps the psychological toll of chronic displacement? That's quite different from an Israeli film potentially facing international boycott calls, a direct response to a
government's policies rather than the inescapable reality of living under occupation. The article conveniently ignores the structural violence inherent in one side's filmmaking process, preferring to focus on a symmetrical 'struggle' that simply doesn't exist.