AceShowbiz - Palestine 36, the historical epic directed by Annemarie Jacir, is now exclusively streaming on Cineverse's Fandor platform, the companies announced on September 8, 2026. The film, which premiered at the 2025 Toronto Film Festival, made the short list for the 98th Academy Awards for Best International Film and was selected for the European Film Awards Feature Film Selection.

Set in 1936 during the British Mandate of Palestine, Palestine 36 follows Yusuf, a young man caught between his village home and his work in Jerusalem as the British Empire tightens its grip on the region. Amidst an anti-colonial revolt and Jewish refugees fleeing persecution from Europe, all sides converge in a decisive moment for the entire region.

The film features an ensemble cast led by Academy Award winner Jeremy Irons (Reversal of Fortune, House of Gucci, TV's Watchmen) and Hiam Abbass (TV's Succession, Blade Runner 2049, Atonement). The cast also includes Saleh Bakri (Salt of This Sea, The Time That Remains), Dhafer L'Abidine (Children of Men, TV's Eugene Nights, The Eddy), Yasmine Al Massri (TV's Quantico, Castlevania, Caramel), Billy Howle (TV's The Perfect Couple, Under the Banner of Heaven, The Serpent), Liam Cunningham (TV's Game of Thrones, 3 Body Problem, The Last Voyage of Demeter), and Robert Aramayo (TV's The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, Game of Thrones, The King's Man).

Jacir, who previously directed When I Saw You, wrote and directed the film. In her director's statement, she explained the personal significance of the project. "It has been a long-time dream to tell the story of the 1936-39 revolt, and telling it through the different points of view of an ensemble of characters came naturally," she said. "The 1936 uprising marks the most pivotal moment of our history and I was interested in telling the story in an intimate, raw and personal way. The script's structure follows the various characters' journeys, weaving in and out like embroidery. Every one of them is somehow connected to another. Their lives intersect, sometimes just barely. Each one is confronted with a moment that changes them, brings them to a place they did not expect and it is there they make a choice of how to go forward."

She added, "Palestine 36 is a period film, but I never conceived it as something of the past. It has always been current, relevant and alive."

The production faced extraordinary challenges. Preproduction began in January 2023, with the team prepping locations across the country, sewing and embroidering costumes and village dresses, collecting old props, and renovating and restoring an entire village, including planting fields of obsolete crops and building old British war vehicles and weapons. It was the country's most ambitious film to date, with a team of hundreds. After October 7th, they were forced to shut down production and relocated to Jordan. After thirteen months, they were able to return to complete shooting in Palestine against the odds. In November 2024, after having to stop and start production four times due to the increasingly tense geopolitical situation, the team finally wrapped the final phase of shooting. It remains the only feature film to shoot in Palestine in the last two years.

The film's historical backdrop is the farmer-led revolt against British colonialism in 1936, which marked the beginning of the largest and longest uprising against Britain's 30-year rule. Palestinians from all classes were mobilized, and nationalistic sentiment spread in the Arabic press, schools, social and literary circles. The British, taken aback by the extent and intensity of the revolt, retaliated by placing Palestine under martial law, deploying over twenty thousand troops to Palestine, and still failed to control a population of less than one million people. Ships arrived loaded with tanks and machine guns. The Royal Air Force began strafing the countryside. Thousands of Palestinians were imprisoned, beaten, and the leadership exiled. The revolt lasted for three years and was arguably the largest and longest anti-colonial uprising in the British Empire.

The film's accolades include a nomination for Best Screenplay at the 2025 Asia Pacific Screen Awards, a win for Breakthrough Performer of the Year at the 2026 London Critics Circle Film Awards, a nomination for British/Irish Performer of the Year at the same awards, and nominations for Supporting Actor – Film and International Film at the 2026 Irish Film and Television Awards.

Palestine 36 is a Palestine, UK, France, Norway, Qatar, KSA, and Jordan co-production, running 119 minutes in Arabic and English. It is distributed in the USA and Canada by Watermelon Pictures.

The film is now available to stream exclusively on Fandor, which is available on iOS, Android, Prime Video, Roku, YouTube TV, Comcast, and Fandor's direct website.