The following announcement was provided by Watertown Citizens for Peace, Justice and the Environment:
The Palestine-Gaza Committee of Watertown Citizens for Peace, Justice and the Environment is launching a series of documentary and feature films that will explore the history and culture of the Palestinian people and provide a picture of their life under Israeli occupation.
The series gets underway at 6 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 15, at the Church of the Good Shepherd, 9 Russell Ave., Watertown, with the showing of “1948: Creation and Catastrophe.” A discussion will follow the presentation. Admission is free. The church has a wheel-chair accessible entrance and restrooms.
Thereafter, a Palestine-centered film will be shown at Good Shepherd at 6 p.m. on the second Sunday of every month from March to December. Contact watertowncitizens@gmail.com for more information.
FEBRUARY 15, 6:00 PM 1948: CREATION AND CATASTROPHE
“1948: Creation and Catastrophe,” released in 2017, is a riveting documentary account of a pivotal year during which the state of Israel was created and an estimated 700,000 Palestinians were displaced from their ancestral homes. The film draws on the personal recollections of both Israelis and Palestinians.
MARCH 8, 6:00 P.M: FARHA
“Farha,” a feature film released in 2021, is the harrowing story of a 14 year-old Palestinian girl whose life is brutally upended during the tumultuous events of 1948.
In addition to the film series, the Palestine-Gaza Committee holds a vigil in Watertown Square every Saturday from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. to support peace, security and reconstruction in Gaza and the West bank and the implementation of Palestinian national rights overall.
Here’s a few more titles y’all might consider:
“October 7: Bearing Witness to the Massacre”: “Todd Morehead, an American Christian, visits Israel to bear witness to the atrocities of October 7, and to explore the background and motivations of those who perpetrated the deadliest day in Jewish history since the Holocaust. It also explores the ideological roots and declared aspirations of Hamas and radical Islamists, and shows the traumatic events of October 7 through the stories of survivors, first responders, a former hostage, and the chilling video footage taken by the terrorists themselves.
“October 7th: Through Their Eyes”: “Within hours of the October 7th Hamas attack on Israel, a small group of Israeli volunteers quickly set out to capture the historically significant digital stream of social media posts, selfies, images and messages from massacre survivors and those who perished.
“The Road Between Us: The Ultimate Rescue”: “A largely human-centric and apolitical affair, focusing on one Israeli grandfather’s attempt to rescue his family trapped in a Hamas-occupied kibbutz on that fateful day. The grandfather, an even-keeled retired Israeli general named Noam Tibon, re-creates the harrowing journey he took as he faced heavy fire and rescued numerous civilians from a murderous fate on the way to his son, daughter-in-law and two toddler granddaughters in the besieged Nahal Oz kibbutz near the Gaza border.”
“The Children of October 7”: “A 2024 Paramount+ documentary in which singer and activist Montana Tucker conducts intimate interviews with about seven Israeli children, ages 9 to 17, who survived the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks. These children recount in their own words harrowing experiences: watching parents murdered, being held hostage in Gaza, losing siblings, or hiding during home invasions. The film strips away political framing to center their voices, urging viewers to bear witness to their trauma, resilience, and quest for healing.”
“Screams Before Silence”: “A 2024 documentary directed by Anat Stalinsky and led by former Meta executive Sheryl Sandberg that centers on testimonies of sexual violence during the October 7 attacks. Through interviews with released hostages, survivors, first responders, medical and forensic experts, the film aims to document rapes, assaults, and other forms of sexual brutality committed by Hamas during and after the massacre — particularly at the Nova music festival and in kidnappings into Gaza.”
“We Will Dance Again”: “A 2024 Paramount+ documentary directed by Yariv Mozer that reconstructs the October 7 attack on the Nova music festival in Israel. The film weaves together more than a dozen survivor testimonies with raw cell-phone and found footage — including recordings taken during the chaos — to offer a minute-by-minute account of how what began as a celebration turned into a massacre. The documentary does not shy away from graphic detail: it shows the violent intrusion of Hamas militants, the panic of festivalgoers trying to escape or hide, and the human cost of the attack. In doing so, “We Will Dance Again” aims to preserve the memory of the victims, amplify the voices of survivors, and force viewers to reckon with the immediacy and horror of October 7.
With restraint, that oughta get you through the summer to the anniversary of the infamous date. Here’s one you might consider for 10/7/26:
“October 8”: “A 2025 American documentary directed by Wendy Sachs that examines the sharp rise of antisemitism in the United States in the wake of the Oct. 7 attacks. Through interviews with students, public figures, and experts, the film traces how anti-Israel sentiment spilled onto U.S. college campuses, social media, and public discourse — and argues that it evolved into more overt antisemitism. “
Agreed, good to get information via documentaries on all the atrocities against humanity.
You should definitely organize another film festival to share your perfectly reasonable points. Not sure why they are required to do so in your opinion. Despite the best efforts of Trump and MAGA, we remain a relatively free country. If you do, I will travel all the way from central Massachusetts to my hometown to participate.
A simple thank you would have sufficed. No one is required to do anything: “might consider” is all I asked. But I’ll invite you to such a film “festival” you suggest, if ever I have the stomach to expose myself to such inhuman butchery. Knowing it happened is mental torture enough.
Fellow townspeople ignoring the casus belli to defeat Hamas and free the hostages makes it worse. Especially when Hamas could have ended the war any moment of any day. They “might consider” that too.
Thanks, Josh, for a great list of documentaries. Tragic Awakening is another one to add to this list. In fact, this summer Jewish Watertown Action Network (JWAN) did a screening of that film as well as the film October 8. Both were fact-based, insightful films that focused on the current challenges society needs to be aware of. JWAN hopes to do more film screenings in the future – along with other programming. Through education, dialogue, and critical analysis, we strive to expose and counter misinformation, propaganda, and prejudice – whether propagated by local groups or global media outlets. Our mission is to foster a more informed, inclusive, and empathetic public, grounded in truth and historical awareness to ensure a safe and inclusive community for all. For those who’d like to learn more contact us at JWAN02472@gmail.com.