Academy apologizes for not adequately supporting Oscar-winning Palestinian director
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences issued a statement to its members on Friday apologizing for not adequately expressing its support of the Palestinian Oscar-winning filmmaker Hamdan Ballal.
Ballal, who won this year’s feature-length documentary Academy Award for co-directing the film No Other Land about the difficulties of life under Israeli occupation, said he was attacked on Monday by Israeli settlers. He was then arrested by the Israeli army. Israeli authorities released the director the following day, saying Ballal had been detained for hurling stones. The filmmaker and witnesses deny this accusation.
The Academy’s initial statement in response to the alleged attack, sent out on Wednesday to its roughly 11,000 members, did not include Ballal’s name or the title of his film.
Co-signed by Academy CEO Bill Kramer and President Janet Yang, the Wednesday statement spoke in generalities, such as, “The Academy condemns harming or suppressing artists for their work or their viewpoints,” and, “We believe deeply in the ability of film to illuminate, to provoke thought, and to bridge divides by offering a window into diverse human experiences.”
Kramer and Yang’s updated statement, sent out on Friday and shared by the Academy’s press office on Saturday via email with NPR, was more explicit:
“We regret that we failed to directly acknowledge Mr. Ballal and the film by name,” it said. “We sincerely apologize to Mr. Ballal and all artists who felt unsupported by our previous statement and want to make it clear that the Academy condemns violence of this kind anywhere in the world.”
The apology appeared after a wave of online protests against the Academy — first for not responding to Ballal’s attack, and then for not responding adequately to it.
“Sadly, the US Academy, which awarded us an Oscar three weeks ago, declined to publicly support Hamdan Ballal while he was beaten and tortured by Israeli soldiers and settlers,” wrote No Other Land co-director Yuval Abraham on X on Wednesday, before Kramer and Yang released their first statement.
“Several US Academy members — especially in the documentary branch — pushed for a statement, but it was ultimately refused. We were told that because other Palestinians were beaten up in the settler attack, it could be considered unrelated to the film, so they felt no need to respond,” Abraham wrote.
After Kramer and Yang’s initial statement was issued, a large group of Academy members launched a letter of protest on Friday against it. Among the signatories, which had exceeded 800 in number at the time of writing, are Hollywood A-listers including Pedro Pascal, Joaquin Phoenix, Olivia Colman, Steve Buscemi and America Ferrera.
“The statement by Bill Kramer and Janet Yang fell far short of the sentiments this moment calls for,” the protest letter states above the signatures. “Therefore we are issuing our own statement, which speaks for the undersigned members of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.”
In an email on Saturday, the Academy told NPR its updated apology naming Ballal and his film was already in the works prior to the much-signed protest petition, but that the 55-member board needed to convene before it could be released, requiring additional time.
The incident involving Ballal highlights the ongoing outbursts of violence in the West Bank. Attacks on Palestinians have escalated since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza in October 2023.
Home sales are down. So why are prices at an all-time high?
Those with equity in a home can trade up more easily, while many first-time homebuyers are still stuck on the sidelines.
Taiwan votes to decide whether to oust lawmakers from China-friendly party
Taiwanese were voting Saturday to determine whether to oust about one-fifth of their lawmakers, in elections that could potentially reshape the power balance in the self-ruled island's legislature.
Has the Billboard Hot 100 caught the Holy Ghost?
Brittany dives into the economy behind Christian contemporary music
Arizona woman to serve 8 years for identity theft scheme benefiting North Korea
Christina Chapman was sentenced to prison this week for her role in a scheme that the DOJ said used stolen American identities in order to help illegally employ North Koreans in U.S. companies.
Lawmakers seek to ban federal agents from wearing masks
ICE says its employees have good reasons to hide their faces from protesters who want to dox them online, but Democrats say masked federal agents evokes "secret police," and the practice should be banned.
Independent grocery stores have had a tough five years. SNAP cuts will make it harder
The bulk of sales for many independent grocers come from SNAP. Cuts to the program could leave some making hard decisions about their future.