Filmmaker Defends Casting Amid Venice Film Festival Controversy

VENICE, Italy — At a press conference this afternoon, an award-winning artist and filmmaker addressed recent calls from the group Venice4Palestine. The group has requested that certain stars of his latest movie not be invited to the Venice Film Festival.

The filmmaker, whose identity was not revealed during the event, stated, “I think there’s no reason to boycott artists. I selected those actors for their merits as actors, and they did an extraordinary job in the film.”

He refrained from discussing the ongoing situation in Gaza, adding, “I think we should talk about the movie rather than this issue.”

Venice4Palestine was formed last month by a group of Italian cinema professionals. They called for festival invitations to be retracted for actors who they believe support Israel, such as Gal Gadot.

A representative for Gadot previously told Deadline that she had “never been able nor was ever confirmed” for the festival.

The controversy around casting has sparked wide conversation in the film community regarding the intersection of art and political beliefs.