Film Industry Rallies Behind NAZA Directors

Israel's culture minister, Miki Zohar, has threatened to revoke the citizenship of Oscar-winning Israeli documentary directors Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor. The threat follows their film NAZA winning a special jury prize at the Venice Film Festival on September 14, 2026, after a record 25-minute standing ovation.

NAZA, produced by the Guardian, investigates AI-powered targeting systems used by the Israeli military in Gaza. The film's title comes from an acronym used by Israeli intelligence to denote expected civilian casualties in airstrikes. It features interviews with 24 Israeli military and intelligence personnel.

Global Festival Support

Julie Huntsinger, artistic director of the Telluride Film Festival, condemned the minister's threat. "Documentary film-makers are among the best long-form journalists working and critical to our understanding of the world," she said. "To even threaten their citizenship standing is unacceptable."

The heads of the Locarno Film Festival stated they stand "firmly in support of film-makers' right to pursue difficult and urgent subjects without fear of reprisal." The San Sebastián Film Festival, where NAZA screens next week, said the film "exposes the systematic genocide of the Palestinian people by the Israeli government" and expressed solidarity with its makers.

Tricia Tuttle, director of the Berlin International Film Festival, said state responses to art should be "dialogue and scrutiny, not intimidation or punishment." Her own position was threatened earlier in 2026 after winners at the Berlinale awards condemned Israel's actions.

Factual Backing and Previous Work

Laura Poitras, who won a documentary Oscar in 2015 for Citizenfour, defended NAZA's accuracy. She acted as a consultant on the film. "The facts about the mass killing of civilians in NAZA have been reported by the Guardian in dozens of rigorously fact-checked articles," Poitras stated. She compared the Israeli government's response to U.S. Government attacks on her reporting about the National Security Agency.

Abraham and Szor previously won the documentary Oscar in 2025 for No Other Land, a film about Israeli settler violence made with Palestinian co-directors. Following that win, Abraham's family home was targeted by a right-wing mob.

Industry Petition and Domestic Backlash

In Israel, over 1,500 film-makers have signed a petition supporting Abraham and Szor and refuting accusations they sought to damage Israel's image. Signatories include directors Nadav Lapid and Hagai Levi. The petition warns that the vilification campaign is moving close to "effectively sanctioning violence" against the directors.

Support also came from British figures like director Richard Eyre and writer Hanif Kureishi, who called the pair "brave and admirable." Photographer Nan Goldin applauded their "enormous courage."

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has not commented. NAZA will have its North American premiere at the New York Film Festival later in September 2026.