Overview
- The Venice4Palestine open letter has gathered more than 200 signatories and was published Aug. 28–29 by artists including Roger Waters and Annie Ernaux.
- Signatories demand the Palestinian flag be flown at the festival, greater supply-chain transparency, suspension of agreements with bodies linked to the Israeli government, and protections for professionals who dissociate from those ties.
- Venice’s official selection includes two Palestinian films and the Gaza-set documentary Naza was added to competition, increasing expectations the festival will be a platform for discussion of the Israel–Gaza war.
- Organizers have canceled the traditional opening jury press conference and said the change is due to a scheduling conflict, a move that festival spokespeople deny was politically motivated.
- Venice4Palestine has scheduled a Sept. 8 panel in the Giornate degli Autori program and the campaign continues a year-long push that could shape public scrutiny, press questions for jurors, and protests during the Sept. 2–12 festival.