In 1968, a group of young Palestinian filmmakers decided to establish a film unit affiliated with the Palestinian Revolution active in Amman, Jordan. The Palestine Film Unit (PFU) worked with Al-Fatah, one of the PLO’s factions. The PFU furnished the revolution with a cinematic vocabulary, and addressed the decades-long dilemma of invisibility. Eventually, the work of the unit played a major role in Palestinian revolutionary cinema. This presentation tracks the life and work of the PFU and its members as an example of a militant cinema practice in the 1960’s and ‘70’s, when filmmakers believed cinema could change the world.

Subversive Film is a cinema research and production initiative that aims to cast new light on historical works related to Palestine and the region; extend support for film preservation; and investigate archival practices and its effects. Other projects developed by Subversive Film to explore this field include the digital re-issuing of previously overlooked films, curating rare film screening cycles, and subtitling rediscovered films. Subversive Film was formed in 2011 and is based in Ramallah and London.