“No Other Land,” a documentary made by a quartet of Israeli and Palestinian activist filmmakers, won the Oscar for best documentary feature at the Academy Awards, leading to one of the most passionate and political speeches of the night.
The film, which examines the forced displacement of Basel Adra, one of the four filmmakers, from his home in the West Bank, has not yet found distribution despite widespread critical acclaim.
“About two months ago, I became a father, and I hope to my daughter, she will not have to live the same life I am now,” Adra said. “Always fearing violence, home demolition, and displacement my community is facing every day.
“We call on the world to take serious actions and to stop the unjust ethnic cleansing,” he said.
His collaborator, Yuval Abraham, who befriended Adra and has helped him fight for his and his community’s rights, said they, along with Hamdan Ballal and Rachel Szor, made “No Other Land” because “together our voices are stronger.”
“There is a different path, a political solution, without ethnic supremacy, with national rights,” Abraham said. “And I have to say the foreign policy in this country is helping to block this path. Why can’t you see that we are intertwined? That my people can be truly safe only if Basal’s people are truly safe.
“There is another way; it’s not too late,” he said.
“Dune 2” later picked up a pair of Oscars in technical categories, winning for best sound and best special effects.
And that wasn’t the only recurring presence by “Dune 2,” as Conan O’Brien brought back the piano-playing sandworm to play harp with the Oscar orchestra. You don’t go to the trouble to make a sandworm costume without making sure to use it at least twice, O’Brien noted.