ONCE UPON A TIME IN GAZA
A film by Tarzan e Arab Nasser
France – Palestine – Germany
2025, 90′
NATIONAL PREMIERE
v.o. Italian subtitles
In collaboration with Bologna for Palestine and Bologna per Gaza
This year, Gender Bender once again turns its focus to Gaza and the Palestinian cause through the voice and vision of the Nasser brothers, directors of Once Upon a Time in Gaza, winner of the Best Director award in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival. Set in Gaza in 2007, a city gripped by siege and political tension, Yahia, a brilliant but restless young student, forms an unlikely friendship with Osama, a charismatic drug dealer with a generous heart.
The two start dealing drugs under the cover of a falafel restaurant, finding an unexpected sense of freedom in crime. But soon they attract the attention of a corrupt policeman—a man of immense power and an even bigger ego. Blending the most distinctive elements of film noir and revenge westerns, and mixing raw irony with a streak of tragedy, Once Upon a Time in Gaza explores the oppression of occupation and how those who struggle daily to live and survive navigate the shifting lines between “right” and “wrong”.
Dates for this event:
Ticket: €10
All proceeds from the screening will be donated to the support fund for Gaza families in Bologna, a voluntary collection organized by Bologna per Gaza and intended for Palestinians arriving in Italy, their families in Gaza, and creative, sharing, and care activities.
Tickets can be purchased:
1) Online: on TicketSms.it
2) In person: from October 30th to November 8th at the Festival Center (DAS – Dispositivo Arti Sperimentali, via del Porto 11/2).
The TICKET OFFICE at the Festival Center is every day from October 30th to November 8th from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.; on October 30th from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.; on November 2nd from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m.
*It is NOT possible to purchase tickets in person at the event venues.
For further information: biglietteria@genderbender.it
Bologna for Palestine
Bologna for Palestine is a statement and a fundraising project through the arts, launched in December 2023 as a spontaneous reaction to the ongoing genocide in Gaza and in response to Western indifference. By bringing different artistic communities into dialogue with each other to rediscover a sense of solidarity, BfP aims to raise funds for the Palestinian people and spread awareness of Palestinian cultural and artistic heritage, which has been systematically erased and destroyed, through encounters and exchanges between Palestinian artists and artists from neighboring areas
and Italian artists and artists from the Bologna scene.
Bologna for Gaza
Bologna for Gaza is a spontaneous network that emerged between August and October 2024 to support families evacuated from Gaza and welcomed in Bologna since 2023. It is not an organization, but a group of local people and groups united by the desire to offer care, closeness, and shared responsibility. The journey began with medical assistance, but soon transformed into a close-knit community that now numbers around 200 people, mainly women and children. Weekly meetings in neighborhood homes have given rise to creative workshops, recreational and physical activities, dance, dabke, and, more recently, music therapy.
Accessibility
Twin brothers Tarzan and Arab Nasser were born in Gaza in 1988 and started their filmmaking careers with their Cannes-selected short Condom Lead before making their first feature film, Dégradé, which premiered in the 68th Cannes’ Critics’ Week.
Their second feature, Gaza mon amour, premiered in the Orrizonti Section of the 77th Venice International Film Festival and was Palestine’s submission to the 93rd Academy Awards.
Discover the other events of the festival
LE PETIT B
Workshop for families with Marion Muzac
Part of Teatro Arcobaleno
FORTE FORTE
Workshop led by Cristina Kristal Rizzo and Diana Anselmo
PLAYING THE RISK
Play / dance by putting yourself out there
Workshop with Juri Roverato
In collaboration with Muvet Bologna
HEALING TOGETHER
A show by Daniele Ninarello
Italy, 50′
AMADRIADI
A show by Michele Ifigenia Colturi / Tyche
Italy, 15′
With the support of Palazzo Bentivoglio