Scandar Copti’s Happy Holidays interweaves a singular family’s experiences and explores the challenges that comes with living as Arabs in Israel.
The film follows Fifi, played by Manar Shebab, her brother Rami, played by Toufic Danial, and their mother Hanan, played by Wafaa Aoun, and their own personal stories through the lens of gender, culture, and years of generational expectations.
Joining them are Shani Dahari, Meirav Memoresky, Imad Hourani, Sophie Awaada, Raed Burbara, and Essam Haddad.
Directed and written by Palestinian filmmaker Scandar Copti, the film features a cast of non-professional actors. Copti employed the Singular Drama method he created on the set of his Oscar-nominated film, Ajami. The cast attended workshops that the director led over the course of a year, where they built relationships with one another and made their characters an extension of themselves.
Happy Holidays premiered at the 2024 Venice Film Festival, where it won the Orizzonti award for Best Screenplay. Recently, it won the Bringing the Borders award at the Palm Springs International Film Festival.
It will have a limited theatrical run in select cities beginning December 5th, starting at the Film Forum in NYC.
While celebrating Purim at her university in Jerusalem, Fifi, a young Palestinian woman, is hospitalized following a car accident. Though her injuries are minor, she fears her newfound freedom at school will now come under the scrutiny of her conservative parents. Meanwhile, back in Haifa, Fifi’s older brother Rami panics as he faces his own personal crisis — Shirley, his Jewish girlfriend, reveals she is pregnant and plans to carry the baby to term. Behind closed doors, the family’s deep financial troubles come into focus while Hanan, Fifi, and Rami’s mother plans her eldest daughter’s wedding.
“Happy Holidays offers a nuanced portrayal of the interdependence between Palestinian subculture and dominant Israeli culture, exposing the varied processes of reality construction within each society and their mutual influence on ordinary individuals from both sides,” said Copti in a statement.
Watch the official trailer for Happy Holidays, above.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.