If Birds Believed in God (2025)
The story follows a day in the life of Ismail, a Palestinian photographer whose American upbringing was shaped by his grandfather’s displacement during the 1948 Palestine Nakba. When Ismail’s mother gifts him his grandfather’s keffiyeh—a traditional Palestinian scarf—it triggers an internal struggle between shame and pride in his cultural identity, all unfolding against the ominous backdrop of rising violence against Palestinians.
Director: Samer Saifan
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Adam Budron as Ismail |
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Nasser Faris as Muhammad |
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Veracity Butcher as Leila |
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Jade Ziane as Khalid |
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Leyla Modirzadeh as Farha |
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Eyas Elkhateeb as Young Boy |
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Ron Fallica as Interviewer |
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Martin Pfefferkorn as Man on Street |
| Camera | Andrew Lin | Director of Photography |
| Sound | Cankat Guenel | Music |
| Production | Darren Zeng | Producer |
| Production | Natalia Hess | Producer |
| Production | Samer Saifan | Executive Producer |
| Editing | Samer Saifan | Editor |
| Art | Samer Saifan | Production Design |
| Art | Maya AlZaben | Production Design |
| Art | Dong Huimin | Art Department Assistant |
| Production | Andrew Dahreddine | Casting Director |
| Production | Samer Saifan | Producer |
| Writing | Samer Saifan | Writer |
| Editing | Jefferson Rosa | Colorist |
| Sound | Amina Hamawy | Sound Mixer |
| Sound | Jennifer Fang | Sound Mixer |
| Sound | Riel Lewis | Boom Operator |
| Sound | Jonathan Silverman | Sound Editor |
| Sound | Otar Bregvadze | Sound Re-Recording Mixer |
| Directing | Samer Saifan | Director |
| Camera | Hugo Boucard | Assistant Camera |
| Camera | Kelly Wang | Assistant Camera |
| Camera | Hippolyte Charlut | Assistant Camera |
| Lighting | Marlo Irani | Gaffer |
| Camera | Vincent Le Chaffotec | Key Grip |
| Camera | Romain Menegon | Grip |
| Camera | Thibault Leboeuf | Grip |
| Camera | Siyu Ren | Grip |
| Crew | Ava Sexton | Makeup Effects |
| Directing | Sabina Maschi | Script Supervisor |
| Directing | Nida Farhoud | Assistant Director |
| Sound | Jonathan Silverman | Sound Re-Recording Mixer |
| Sound | Jonathan Silverman | Boom Operator |
