Palestinian-Jordanian filmmaker Darin J. Sallam says she has never regretted making “Farha,” her debut feature about a Palestinian girl coming of age during the Nakba, the mass displacement and dispossession of Palestinians surrounding the creation of Israel in 1948.
Speaking from the United Arab Emirates, where she is serving on the narrative features jury at the 13th Sharjah International Festival for Children and Youth, Sallam said the film’s impact made the risks worthwhile. She had been warned that choosing such a subject for her first feature could damage her career before it had properly begun.
“Farha” was inspired by a story about a Palestinian refugee that Sallam heard through her mother. The film premiered at the Toronto Film Festival in 2021, was selected as Jordan’s submission for the international feature Oscar and later became available worldwide on Netflix.
Its streaming release led to a fierce backlash, particularly because of a scene showing Israeli soldiers killing a Palestinian family. Israeli officials condemned the film publicly, while Sallam and other people involved in the production faced harassment and online abuse. Sallam has also been unable to travel to Palestine since the film’s release.
For Sallam, the film’s approach was rooted in the belief that history can be understood most powerfully through individual lives. She has expressed a particular interest in women’s stories, arguing that many of their experiences have been overlooked or excluded from historical accounts. In “Farha,” the wider experience of the Nakba is presented through the journey of one young girl.
Sallam says cinema should grow out of a genuine human experience rather than function only as a political message or history lesson. In her view, personal stories can bring audiences closer to the emotions, struggles and dreams behind major historical events.
Her next feature, “Churching of Women,” also explores women and history. Set in the Levant in 1938, in an area encompassing present-day Palestine, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan, the film follows Fadia, a pioneering female writer grieving her parents’ deaths. After turning to her cousin for support, she is confined against her will in a mental asylum while he takes control of her inheritance.
The project participated in the Busan International Film Festival’s Asian Project Market in 2025, where it received the ArteKino International Award. It is now in advanced development and financing. Sallam says the film will examine injustice, grief, solidarity between women and colonial power structures in the region through a broader group of characters.
The experience of producing, releasing and distributing “Farha” is also influencing discussions with her producers about how to approach the new film. However, Sallam says the backlash has not made her more cautious about the stories she wants to tell. Instead, it has reinforced her determination to bring them to audiences through cinema.
Her work with younger audiences at the Sharjah festival has further strengthened her belief that children and adolescents can respond to films with curiosity and emotional maturity. Sallam says they should not be underestimated because of their age and described watching them engage with cinema in Sharjah as heartwarming.
Sources: Variety.