Entrance Row Filmed Leisure has acquired Center East and North African rights for Oscar-winning documentary No Different Land, by Palestinian activist Basel Adra and Israeli journalist Yuval Abraham.
The MENA deal was struck by Elie Touma at Entrance Row and Stephanie Fuchs at Austrian-based gross sales firm Autlook Filmsales, which is overseeing worldwide gross sales.
The announcement comes amid recent pushback in opposition to the documentary within the U.S., the place a Miami mayor has been accused of censorship after he threatened to close down an arthouse cinema exhibiting the work.
Shot between 2019 and 2023, No Different Land captures the wrestle of individuals dwelling within the West Financial institution Palestinian villages of Masafer Yatta within the face of makes an attempt by Israeli authorities and settlers to erase their houses and historical past from the map. Israeli settlers have continued to assault the world for the reason that movie’s Oscar win on March 2.
The documentary follows the journey of Adra as he paperwork the devastation of his hometown, after it’s designated for Israeli army coaching. His efforts to boost consciousness achieve momentum with the assist of Israeli journalist Yuval Abraham, who amplifies his narrative.
The work world premiered at 2023 Berlinale, the place it gained the Viewers Award and Berlinale Documentary Award, with Abraham sparking controversy after he criticized a “state of affairs of apartheid” in Israel and known as for a ceasefire in Gaza in his acceptance speech.
Abraham subsequently received loss of life menaces and was accused of antisemitism. The journalist and filmmaker, who’s descended from a household that was decimated within the Holocaust, has categorically refuted these accusations.
Since its premiere, No Different Land has gained 68 movie pageant and annual award prizes, together with the European Movie Awards, the Boston Society of Movie Critics’ Awards and the Gotham Unbiased Movie Awards.
Nonetheless, the movie was unable to safe a distributor within the U.S., and its Finest Documentary victory class within the 2025 Academy Awards, marked the primary time a documentary had gained an Oscar and not using a distribution firm hooked up.
The filmmakers as a substitute opted for a self-distribution in partnership with Cinetic Media, which facilitated theatrical bookings.
The documentary premiered on February 2 on a single display screen, grossing $26,000, and continued to thrive for 4 extra weeks, surpassing the $1.2 million mark and increasing to 120 screens.
Entrance Row isn’t any stranger to dealing with difficult movies. Earlier this yr, the corporate launched its second Netflix unique, The Sand Fortress, which explored themes of displacement and PTSD below the guise of an atmospheric horror narrative, reaching high 10 standing on Netflix for 2 weeks in over 77 nations.
Different current releases on its slate embrace The Substance, The Apprentice, Emilia Pérez, and The Bibi Recordsdata.
Entrance Row additionally has a historical past of working with politically charged movies. It oversaw the primary theatrical launch of a documentary in MENA cinemas with Michael Moore’s Fahrenheit 9/11, whereas different acquisitions embrace movies equivalent to 20 Days in Mariupol, Ali Abbasi’s Holy Spider, and Nadine Labaki’s The place Do We Go Now?.
Gianluca Chakra, CEO of Entrance Row Filmed Leisure, emphasised the importance of presenting No Different Land to MENA audiences.
“In a world crammed with dominant narratives, it’s important to contemplate various viewpoints. This movie provides a novel perspective, bringing collectively filmmakers united by a simply imaginative and prescient, he mentioned. “The footage introduced is each hanging and unparalleled. Now we have an obligation to verify it reaches audiences. By the lens of those filmmakers, the digicam transforms right into a potent device for fact and resistance, safeguarding the historical past of their village.”
Entrance Row plans to imminently launch the movie theatrically in choose cinemas, adopted by a premium VOD launch throughout the MENA.
