Lebanese Director Delivers Speech About Palestine at Berlinale

At the closing ceremony of the 76th Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale) in Berlin, Lebanese filmmaker Marie-Rose Osta delivered a defining and emotionally charged speech about the suffering of children in Gaza, across Palestine and in Lebanon after being awarded the festival’s Golden Bear for Best Short Film for Someday, a Child.

Osta used her acceptance moment to contrast the fictional narrative of her film, about a young boy with imaginary superpowers, with the stark reality facing children in war zones. “In reality, children in Gaza, in all of Palestine, and in my Lebanon do not have superpowers to protect them from Israeli bombs,” she told the audience, highlighting that violence is not a metaphor but a daily threat for families in the region.

The filmmaker’s remarks resonated deeply during a ceremony marked by political statements from several artists. Osta noted that four children had been killed in southern Lebanon the day before her speech, underscoring the human cost of ongoing conflict in both Lebanon and Gaza.

Beyond drawing attention to specific deaths, she went further to critique the broader international context. Osta accused global powers of enabling “genocide empowered by veto powers and the collapse of international law,” implicitly referencing repeated United Nations Security Council vetoes that have stalled ceasefire efforts in Gaza.

Her final words reframed the Golden Bear not simply as a personal accolade but as a moral statement. “If this award means anything at all,” she said, “let it mean that Lebanese and Palestinian children are not negotiable,” a phrase that was met with prolonged applause from the festival audience.

Osta’s speech contributed to a broader atmosphere of political expression at this year’s Berlinale, where filmmakers have increasingly used the platform to address war, displacement and international accountability. Her bold intervention stands out for centering voices often unheard on the world stage and for aligning cinematic achievement with urgent humanitarian concerns.

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