In Episode 67 of The Enlightenment Podcast, Hanan and Shamim are honored to be joined by Cherien Dabis, the Emmy-nominated Palestinian-American filmmaker, writer, and actress whose work has reshaped how Palestinian stories are told on screen.

Cherien’s latest film, All That’s Left of You, shortlisted for Best International Feature Film at the Oscars, is being hailed as a definitive cinematic chronicle of Palestinian dispossession, memory, and survival. The film confronts the realities of loss, exile, and endurance with rare emotional honesty and artistic power.

Her debut feature Amreeka won the FIPRESCI International Critics Prize at Cannes and became the most screened Arab-directed film in U.S. cinema history. Since then, Cherien has built a remarkable career bridging independent Palestinian cinema and mainstream Hollywood, directing episodes of major television series including Ramy, Only Murders in the Building, and Ozark.

This is a vital conversation about storytelling, erasure, and why Palestinian narratives matter now more than ever.

Cherien Dabis’ Work:

All That’s Left of You → watermelonpictures.com/films/all-thats-left-of-you

Amreeka → amazon.com/Amreeka-Yussuf-Abu-Warda/dp/B002T921C0

Cherien Dabis’ Social Media:

Facebook → facebook.com/cheriendabis

Instagram → instagram.com/cheriendabis

X (Twitter) → x.com/CherienDabis

The Enlightenment Podcast Social Media:

feedlinks.link/enlightenmentpodcast

#TheEnlightenmentPodcast #CherienDabis #PalestinianCinema #AllThatsLeftOfYou #Amreeka #FreePalestine #Gaza #PalestinianStories #EndTheOccupation #CinemaAsResistance #ArtAndJustice #Palestine #IsraelGaza #OscarShortlisted

“She helped run one of the most transformative political campaigns in modern U.S. history—and then turned her attention to a different battlefield: culture. From Capitol Hill to Hollywood, she is helping reshape how Palestine is seen, heard, and defended.”

In Episode 66 of The Enlightenment Podcast, hosts Hanan and Shamim are honoured to be joined by Rania Batrice, a Palestinian-American political strategist, organiser, and cultural advocate who went from serving as Deputy Campaign Manager for Bernie Sanders to mobilising Hollywood’s most influential artists and cultural workers for Palestine.

Rania played a key role in one of the most significant progressive political movements in U.S. history. Since then, she has redirected her strategic expertise toward cultural organising, working behind the scenes to help actors, filmmakers, musicians, and public figures speak out against Israel’s genocide in Gaza, despite intense censorship, intimidation, and career threats.

In this episode, we explore how art, politics, and advocacy intersect, and why culture has become one of the most powerful battlegrounds in the global struggle for Palestinian liberation. Rania explains how narrative control shapes public opinion, why Hollywood matters politically, and what it takes to build effective solidarity in an era of mass repression of pro-Palestinian voices.

This episode is about power, storytelling, and resistance—and how movements grow when political strategy, culture, and moral clarity come together. At a time when Gaza is under genocide and truth is under attack, Rania Batrice’s work shows how culture can become a tool for liberation rather than complicity.

Rania Batrice’s Work:

Website → batrice.associates/rania

Artists4Ceasefire → artists4ceasefire.org

Palestine Children Relief Fund (PCRF) → pcrf.net/donate

Rania Batrice’s Social Media:

Facebook → facebook.com/raniabatricepage

Instagram → instagram.com/rbatrice

X (Twitter) → x.com/RaniaBatrice

The Enlightenment Podcast Social Media:

feedlinks.link/enlightenmentpodcast

#TheEnlightenmentPodcast #RaniaBatrice #FreePalestine #GazaGenocide #PalestineSolidarity #HollywoodForPalestine #ArtAsResistance #CulturalActivism #EndIsraeliApartheid #CeasefireNow #PoliticalStrategy #BernieSanders #TruthToPower #PalestinianLiberation

“She picked up a paintbrush at fourteen, inside a besieged strip of land the world prefers to see only through rubble and statistics. What emerged instead were explosions of colour—women, nature, memory, and life—painted from inside Gaza itself.”

In Episode 65 of The Enlightenment Podcast, Hanan and Shamim are honoured to be joined by Malak Mattar, a young Palestinian artist from Gaza whose work has become one of the most recognisable visual languages of contemporary Palestinian resistance.

Born in Gaza in 1999, Malak is a self-taught artist who began painting as a teenager during Israel’s repeated assaults on the Strip. In just a few years, her vibrant, emotionally charged paintings have reached international audiences, exhibited across Europe and beyond. Her work is instantly recognisable for its bold use of colour, recurring imagery of women and nature, and its deep grounding in Palestinian daily life, memory, and survival.

Malak’s art does not document destruction—it insists on presence. It speaks to hope, resilience, femininity, and the lived experience of growing up under siege, offering a powerful counter-narrative to how Gaza is usually portrayed in Western media.

This episode is a reminder that Palestine is not only a site of suffering—but of imagination, creativity, and enduring life.

Malak Mattar’s Work:

Website → malak-mattar.com

Etsy → etsy.com/shop/MalakArtStore

Malak Mattar’s Social Media:

Facebook → facebook.com/people/Malak-Mattar / facebook.com/MalakMattarArtist

Instagram → instagram.com/malakmattarart/

X (Twitter) → x.com/MalakMattarart

The Enlightenment Podcast Social Media:

feedlinks.link/enlightenmentpodcast

#TheEnlightenmentPodcast #MalakMattar #PalestinianArt #Gaza #ArtAsResistance #GazaUnderSiege #FreePalestine #PalestinianArtists #WomenInArt #CultureIsResistance #PalestinianCulture #GazaGenocide #EndTheOccupation #VisualResistance