The National Center for Cinema and Image (CNCI) announced on August 27, 2025, that Tunisia will submit Kaouther Ben Hania’s latest feature, The Voice of Hind Rajab, for the next Academy Awards in the Best International Feature Film category. This choice highlights the filmmaker’s growing prominence on the international stage and reflects Tunisia’s ambition to shine in the global competition.
Kaouther Ben Hania is no stranger to the Oscars. She earned Tunisia its first nomination for Best International Feature Film with The Man Who Sold His Skin (2020), which premiered at the Venice Film Festival and received widespread international critical acclaim. She was later nominated for Best Documentary Feature with Four Daughters (2023), which also marked a historic milestone as the first Tunisian film in official competition at Cannes since 1970, confirming her increasing stature in the global cinema landscape.
A Highly Anticipated World Premiere in Venice
The Voice of Hind Rajab will have its world premiere on September 3, 2025, at the Venice Film Festival, in official competition. The selection immediately drew international attention, further amplified by the involvement of major Hollywood figures such as Brad Pitt, Joaquin Phoenix, and Jonathan Glazer, who joined the project as executive producers. Their support underscores the film’s significance and reach, combining emotional depth, social engagement, and universal resonance.
Synopsis: The Tragic Fate of Hind Rajab
The Voice of Hind Rajab tells the tragic story of Hind Rajab, a six-year-old Palestinian girl caught in the Gaza conflict. Hind was in a car with her family as they tried to flee the bombings. Israeli gunfire first claimed the lives of several family members. In a final act of survival, Hind and her cousin managed to contact emergency services by phone. This desperate call was recorded by the Red Crescent and widely shared online, giving global resonance to the horror experienced by Palestinian civilians.
Several days later, the family’s and rescuers’ cars were found. The family car bore 355 bullet impacts, a stark testimony to the extreme violence they endured. Through this harrowing story, Kaouther Ben Hania highlights the impact of the Palestinian conflict on children and families, offering the international audience a work that gives voice to those rarely heard on the global stage.
Cinema and Engagement
The film’s selection in Venice comes amid a sensitive political context. A few weeks before the festival’s opening, an open letter signed by 1,500 artists called on the festival to take a stand against the ongoing genocide in Gaza and to amplify Palestinian voices. Venice’s organizers responded that programming The Voice of Hind Rajab was, in itself, a statement, highlighting a Palestinian perspective that is often marginalized.
The Road to the Oscars: Schedule and Stakes
The Tunisian film now enters the race for the 2026 Oscars, with the first shortlist of 15 films to be announced on December 16, 2025, followed by the final list on January 22, 2026. The 98th Academy Awards ceremony will take place in Los Angeles on March 15, 2026.
With this feature, Kaouther Ben Hania reaffirms her ability to combine artistic rigor, social engagement, and international reach, placing Tunisia at the center of the global cinematic scene.
In 2025, the Best International Feature Film Oscar was awarded to Brazil for Walter Salles’ I’m Still Here, a reminder that films combining narrative power and universal impact have every chance in this competition.
The Voice of Hind Rajab thus promises to be a major cinematic event, blending emotional intensity with social commitment, and could become a historic milestone in contemporary Tunisian cinema.
Neïla Driss
