Koudéta Films has acquired French distribution rights to Palestinian director Hosam Abu Dan’s “Thirteen in Gaza,” a drama shot in Gaza with a Palestinian crew under wartime conditions. The film follows a father and his 13-year-old daughter as they try to survive displacement and hardship. It is the first film shot in the Gaza Strip since the Israel-Hamas war began in 2023.
The deal was closed by Mad World, the international sales arm of Pan-Arab distributor Mad Solutions, ahead of the film’s Middle East premiere at the Doha Film Festival, which runs Nov. 19-27. “Thirteen in Gaza” had its world premiere in September in the Centrepiece programme at the Toronto Film Festival, where it received the NETPAC Award. U.S. distribution rights went to Watermelon Pictures.
Mary Ziyara plays Raghad, who has lost her home and much of her family in a bombing. She lives with her father, played by Feras Al Masri, in a crowded displacement camp. As Raghad faces puberty, grief and a lack of privacy, her father struggles to protect her amid poverty and worsening hardship. His involvement with Khalil, a trader profiting from the wartime economy, leads him to difficult moral choices.
Koudéta Films described the film as a portrayal of Gaza through everyday life, love and dignity. The Paris and New York-based impact studio is developing a French distribution label focused on political and social films, with Palestine at the heart of its mission. It plans a French theatrical release accompanied by an impact campaign; the release date has not yet been announced.
Sources: Variety.