01Desert Dogs
Feature film · 2026
↗Palestinian filmmaker & screenwriterJerusalem · Palestine
Ihab
Jadallah
Writer, director and producer creating politically urgent, formally ambitious cinema.
Selected work ↓
01 / Profile
A graduate of the Centre d’Estudis Cinematogràfics de Catalunya (CECC), Ihab Jadallah is an award-winning Palestinian filmmaker and screenwriter. He wrote, directed and produced his first feature, Desert Dogs (2026). His short films include the guerrilla-style The Shooter and Flower Seller; the latter was selected in competition at Clermont-Ferrand and the Abu Dhabi Film Festival.
He is currently financing Awdah, a feature project selected for the 2018 Sundance Screenwriters Lab, the 2019 Sundance Directors Lab and L’Atelier at Cannes in 2022.
02 / Selected work
Films
03 / Director filmography
Filmography
Selected works across fiction, documentary and artists’ moving image.
2007
The Shooter
Short · 7 min
2008
Absence
Video art · 2 min
2009
Looking for Zak
Short fiction · 9 min
2012
Flower Seller
Short fiction · 18 min
2012
Copyleft
Video art · 8 min
2013
Post 93
Video installation · 3 min
2020
The End Is Here
Short video · 6 min
2026
Desert Dogs
Feature film
04 / Labs, markets & development
A project shaped through dialogue.
2009–11
TorinoFilmLab
2010
La Fabrique Cinéma de Cannes
2009
Dubai Film Connection · Producer Award
2011
SANAD Development Award
2016
EICTV Development Lab · Cuba
2017
!f Sundance Screenwriting Lab · Istanbul
2018
Sundance Screenwriters Lab
2019
Sundance Directors Lab
2022
L’Atelier · Festival de Cannes
05 / Press & recognition
Press, profiles & conversations.
Selected coverage of Ihab’s films, practice and contribution to film education.
2026Education profile↗2025Education press↗2025Education leadership↗2022Official selection↗2022Industry press↗2019Official announcement↗2019Industry press↗2018Official announcement↗2018Industry press↗2015Project profile↗ProfileArtist profile↗ProfileArtist profile↗2011Festival archive↗2009Festival catalogue↗InterviewArabic video interview↗ProfileFilm profile↗
Series Mania Forum
Building pathways for Palestinian screenwriters through Arabic-language film education
NAHEMI
CILECT Congress report highlights Ihab Jadallah and the Sam Spiegel education team
CILECT
Ihab Jadallah joins the Standing Committee on Equity, Diversity & Inclusion
Festival de Cannes · Cinéma de Demain
Awdah selected for L’Atelier 2022
Screen Daily
Cannes L’Atelier announces its 2022 project selection
Sundance Institute
Ihab Jadallah named a Directors Lab fellow for The Doubt
IndieWire
Sundance announces its 2019 Directors Lab fellows
Sundance Institute
The Doubt selected for the Screenwriters Lab
Eye For Film
Sundance announces Directors and Screenwriters Lab participants
Arab Fund for Arts and Culture
Desert Dogs receives AFAC cinema support
TorinoFilmLab
Ihab Jadallah — filmmaker and Aanat Films co-founder
Akademie Schloss Solitude
Fellow profile: filmography, awards and international selections
International Film Festival Rotterdam
Flower Seller in Picture Palestine
FIDMarseille
The Shooter in Heroes in the City
Cinema Badila
A conversation with Ihab Jadallah about The Shooter and filmmaking
MEC Film
The Shooter — filmmaker profile and background
06 / Education & mentorship
Teaching cinema as a way of seeing.
Ihab’s teaching connects film history and critical thought to the practical decisions of writing, directing and making work under real conditions.
Contribution to film education
Practice, access and the freedom to find a voice.
Ihab leads Arabic-language screenwriting education at the Jerusalem Sam Spiegel Film School and teaches Introduction to Cinema at Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design. His wider teaching includes Al-Quds University, Bethlehem University and the Palestinian Art Academy.
As a member of CILECT’s Standing Committee on Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (SCEDI), he contributes to an international conversation about decolonising curricula, fair assessment, inclusive access and representation in film education.
01Head of Screenwriting Program in Arabic
Sam Spiegel Film School
02Lecturer · Introduction to Cinema
03SCEDI Committee Member · GEECTBezalel Academy of Arts and Design
CILECT · 2025—
Online courses
Courses built from practice.
Small, focused learning experiences in English or Arabic. Dates and enrolment will be announced soon.
Live online · 6 sessions
From Script to Director’s Vision
Translate the written page into visual language, performance, rhythm, locations and a coherent directing treatment.
Live online · 4 sessions
Write the Short Film You Can Make
Build a strong short around available resources, dramatic economy and a production plan that protects the idea.
Online intensive · 4 sessions
Directing Actors for the Screen
Objectives, subtext, rehearsal, blocking and truthful performance with professional and non-professional actors.
Online seminar · 6 sessions
Palestinian Cinema: History, Form & Resistance
A critical journey through Palestinian film history, aesthetics, archives, representation and decolonial practice.
Mentorship & workshops
For filmmakers and institutions.
One-to-one mentorship
Focused support for filmmakers developing a voice, a project or a sustainable creative practice.
Story development
A structured reading process for concept, character, dramatic movement and the next meaningful draft.
Institutional workshops
Custom courses and masterclasses for film schools, labs, universities and cultural organisations.
07 / Professional project consulting
Find the film inside the script.
For productions and advanced projects. Individual learning and mentorship are offered in the Education section above.
Script consulting
Structure, character, dialogue and the emotional logic of your screenplay.
Director’s vision
From the written page to visual language, performance and treatment.
Labs & pitching
Applications, dossiers and pitches for funds and co-production markets.