加沙.MP4 GAZA.MP4

GAZA .MP4 is a meditation on the mundanity of hope in the aftermath of the war on Gaza post-7th October 2023. The video portrays scenes of daily life in Gaza through the lens of a disrupted communication between two friends, Diaa and Mohannad. Diaa requests filmmaker Mohannad to use his phone to capture raw visual materials during his displacement journey from Gaza, Khan Yunis, and Rafah since October. Mohammad’s compliance cements a bond forged during their student days and addresses the phenomenon of data clouding and transferring through alternative channels like Telegram. Using the chat window as a visual element to evoke a sense of our modern anxiety and the relentless pace induced by ADHD, the footage is received and processed by Diaa.

GAZA .MP4 presents footage from Gaza, Mohannad’s artworks, his graduation film, and the Telegram chats between him and Diaa. The footage recorded by Mohannad since November 2023 is compiled and assembled in a way that presents a certain progression; from crowded makeshift street markets to vast spaces of a scorched city reduced to rubble. From claustrophobia to desolation. The video addresses the cognitive and psychological impact of witnessing war crimes through screens and social media, while maintaining a personal connection to someone experiencing it firsthand through Mohannad’s shaky handheld footage and voiceover. In addition to underscoring the contradictions between the virtual and physical worlds, the assemblage of image and sound offers a commentary on modern conflict and communication.