Full house for cinematic debut of animated films made by Children of Gaza

There was a full house at The Stella Cinema, Rathmines for the cinematic debut of a series of 17 short animated films made by the children of Gaza in the most difficult of circumstances.

More than 200 guests attended the special ‘Gaza in Colour’ screening of these films, officially opened by The Ambassador of Palestine, Dr Jilan Wahba Abdalmajid and organised by Shauna Cullen of Jam Media, with additional support from Animation Ireland and Avalon Films.

These short animations were only possible due to the efforts of Haneen Koraz, a former teacher and now an acclaimed animation director and mentor from Gaza.

Working with children based in refugee camps in Gaza, she provides animation workshops where these young artists can express themselves, process trauma, and preserve their stories and their sense of childhood.

These workshops serve as small acts of resistance, joy, and healing in deeply challenging times.

Through animation, these young voices are speaking to the world, and Haneen is helping to make sure they’re heard.

The animations present a sometimes fantastical, sometimes comedic and sometimes poignant sense of the daily lives experienced by these children who range in age from 5 years old upwards.

The hope is that this Dublin cinema screening will help bring focus to the work of these children and encourage more people to watch and engage with their short films, which are published on a weekly basis through the Instagram account of Animation Community for Palestine which can be found on Instagram.com/ac4pal

Speaking about the event, Shauna Cullen said, “We were honoured and delighted to be able to showcase these amazing short films.

“When you consider the circumstances in which they were made, I am in constant amazement at what these children and Haneen Koraz have been able to achieve.

“These children are using art as a means of escape and they are doing so with such creativity, humour and compassion. It is an inspiration for anyone working in animation or the creative arts.

“It is also an accessible way for younger audiences to understand what other children are going through in these difficult times, creating space for families to speak about what is a very difficult, sensitive topic in a gentle, meaningful way.

“Our hope is this is just the beginning of spreading word about these animations.

“Already we’ve been contacted by several other arts and film festivals who are interested in screening some of these works.

“Going beyond that we would really encourage anyone who is interested – in animation, in children’s wellbeing or in what is going on in Gaza to consider following their work online.

“By following Animation Community for Palestine on Instagram.com/ac4pal people can check out these brilliant short films and also catch the latest additions, with a new film published each week.

“Knowing people are seeing these animations, even thousands of miles away, gives these children a sense that what they are saying is being heard and that there is an audience for their work.

“If we can keep growing the Instagram account and get more views for these fantastic animations, it will really tell them their artistic voices matter, a very important signal given the day to day realities facing these children,” Ms. Cullen concluded.