SF DocFest 2024: Where Olive Trees Weep

Filmmakers in attendance

Where Olive Trees Weep offers a searing window into the struggles and resilience of the Palestinian people under Israeli occupation. Following Palestinian journalist and therapist Ashira Darwish, grassroots activist Ahed Tamimi and others, the film explores the themes of loss, trauma, and quest for justice. Ancient landscapes bear deep scars, having witnessed the brutal reality of ancestral land confiscation, expulsions, imprisonment, home demolitions, water deprivation, and denial of basic human rights. Yet, through the veil of oppression, we catch a glimpse of the resilience — the deep roots that have carried the Palestinian people through decades of darkness and shattered lives. Bearing witness to their harrowing experiences, one cannot help but ask: What makes the oppressor so ruthlessly blind to its own cruelty?