Thirteen in Gaza

Raghad (Mary Ziyara), a 13-year-old girl, has lost her home and most of her family in a bombing in the Gaza Strip. She now lives with her father (Firas Al-Masri) in a displacement camp, where she’s entering puberty in a crowded environment devoid of safety, privacy, and care. Meanwhile, her father faces hard choices and a moral dilemma involving Khalil (Ghassan Salem), the local boss, in order to ensure their survival.

Palestinian director Hosam Abu Dan and his crew are, all based in Gaza and have decided to show us humanity rather than destruction and survival rather than despair. How do parents manage to protect children in exceptional conditions imposed by a prolonged conflict? What does it mean to grow up in an unstable environment? And what are the long-lasting consequences of such an upbringing?

Puberty is a universal phase marked by physical changes and a shift in how others perceive us and how we understand ourselves. By using a coming-of-age formula to explore daily hardships, Hosam Abu Dan offers us an insider’s intimate view rather than an outsider’s sensationalistic gaze. For this, Thirteen in Gaza not only pays tribute to those living in unacceptable conditions by celebrating their humanity, it also questions our collective failure to protect those who are most vulnerable.

CLAIRE DIAO

TIFF Next Wave: Celebrating the highs and lows (and everything in between) of young voices in today’s fast-moving world. This film has been selected for the next generation of film lovers by the TIFF Next Wave Committee.

Content advisory: mature themes