Venice Film Festival to Host World Premiere of Anti-Israel Doc Alleging ‘Calculated Mass Killings in Gaza’
by Shiryn Ghermezian
A promotional photo for the documentary “NAZA.” Photo: Venice International Film Festival
Organizers of the 83rd Venice International Film Festival announced on Monday the official lineup for the event next month, and it includes the world premiere of another documentary critical of Israel’s military actions from Oscar-winning “No Other Land” directors Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor.
Shot at night on the rooftops of Tel Aviv, “NAZA” shows “the systems behind Israel’s calculated mass killing of Palestinian civilians in Gaza” explained “by the people who designed and operated them,” according to its official synopsis. Abraham and Szor, both of whom are Israeli, filmed over the past three years military officers talking about Israel’s actions in the Gaza Strip during the country’s war against Hamas terrorists responsible the deadly attack in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. “NAZA” is the only documentary feature in competition for the Venice Film Festival’s coveted Golden Lion award. It will make its world premiere on Sept. 10.
The film is produced by the British newspaper The Guardian and James Wilson of JW Films, executive produced by Jonathan Glazer, and its world sales is being handled by MK2 Films.
Wilson and Glazer are the Oscar-winning duo behind the Holocaust drama “The Zone of Interest.” Abraham and Szor are two of the four co-directors of the 2025 controversial Oscar-winning documentary “No Other Land,” which depicts Israelis as violent oppressors while highlighting the Israeli military’s demolition of illegally built Palestinian homes in the West Bank.
“NAZA” is a military acronym “euphemistically used by Israeli intelligence to indicate the number of civilians that it expects will be killed in an airstrike,” according to a statement by MK2 Films, cited by Variety. In the director’s statement, Abraham and Szor said they felt an obligation to make “NAZA” and claimed Israel is responsible for the “total dehumanization” of civilians in Gaza.
The 83rd Venice International Film Festival will run from Sept. 2-12.
“NAZA” will make its North American premiere at the 2026 New York Film Festival running from Sept. 25-Oct. 12.
