By Marc Stoufer III
During the 97th Academy Awards ceremony on Sunday, March 2, many award-winners used the platform of their acceptance speeches to highlight a number of political and humanitarian issues.
Iranian filmmaker Hossein Molayemi, co-director of Best Animated Short Film “In the Shadow of the Cyprus,” spoke about how his heritage influenced the film’s production.
“Just the fact that we managed to make this film under the extraordinary circumstances of our country is a miracle,” he said, referring to a series of attacks from Israel on Iran. “Yes, if we persevere and remain faithful, miracles do happen. We are going to dedicate our film and this precious award to all those who are still fighting in their inner and outer battles heroically.”
Later in the show, host Conan O’Brien joked that “Anora,” a film featuring a Russian oligarch, had won its two awards because “Americans are excited to see somebody finally stand up to a powerful Russian,” in reference to the recent breakdown of U.S. aid in the Russia-Ukraine war.
Daryl Hannah, an actress known for “Blade Runner” and the “Kill Bill” franchise, voiced her support, saying “Slava Ukraine,” which means “Glory to Ukraine,” before presenting the award for Best Film Editing.
In the acceptance speech for the documentary “No Other Land,” about the conflict between Israel and Palestine, the filmmakers spoke to their experiences as a group of residents from both nations.
“‘No Other Land’ reflects the harsh reality that we have been enduring for decades and still resist as we call on the world to take serious actions to stop the injustice and to stop the ethnic cleansing of Palestinian people,” said co-director Basel Adra.
Co-director Yuval Abraham added his concerns with the United State’s response. Since the initial attack on Gaza in October 2023, the U.S. government has publicly supported Israel but called for a ceasefire, yet tensions have far from died down.
“There is a different path, a political solution, without ethnic supremacy, with national rights for both of our people. And I have to say, as I am here, the foreign policy in this country is helping to block this path,” he said.
Despite now being an Oscar-winning documentary, “No Other Land” still does not have a distributor in the U.S. – a fact Abraham attributes to this fraught landscape.
“The film is very, very critical of Israeli policies. As an Israeli, I think that’s a really good thing because we need to be critical of these policies so they can change,” he said in an interview with Variety. “But I think the conversation in the United States appears to be far less nuanced — there is much less space for this kind of criticism, even when it comes in the form of a film.”
Gints Zilbalodis, director of Best Animated Feature Film winner, “Flow,” ended his speech with a message of unity.
“We’re all in the same boat. We must overcome our differences and find ways to work together,” he said.
