The Palestinian flag will be raised next week at the Cannes film festival, which will host their first ever national pavilion.
Film-makers said the new level of representation in the international village of the prestigious festival was a significant step for the fledgling Palestinian cinema industry.
The pavilion, one of around 70 representing countries from across the globe, will give Palestinian film-makers an opportunity to pitch their work to top international industry executives.
Mohanad Yaqubi, one of the co-founders of the Palestine Film Institute, said it was a significant moment.
"Almost every year Palestine has a film selected in Cannes but until now we didn't have an official presence there", Yaqubi, who is also a film-maker, told AFP.
"Industry-wise it is very important to have a presence...(to) network at an industry level", he said in English.
The pavilion will be mostly funded by the Palestinian ministry of culture, which declined to say exactly how much it invested.
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Lina Bokhary, head of the ministry's cinema department, said the decision was part of wider efforts to promote Palestinian film.
"All throughout the history of film, for a national film industry to happen you need stability and state investment - and that is something we never had".
"Cannes is important because it is a hub, the door to all of Europe which is a big market for Palestinian films".
Saudi Arabia, which recently lifted a ban on cinema in the country, is also expected to have its first pavilion at the Cannes film festival which begins on May 8.
The Palestinian film industry is small and respected, and a number of films have gained critical acclaim in recent years, Bokhary said.
"If in a year we have four or five feature films that would be a very good year", she said.
In 2017, the Palestinian film Ghost Hunting, which focused on Israeli prisons, won best documentary at the Berlin International Film Festival.
Yaqubi said that much of the Palestinian film industry was about humanising Palestinians, who are often seen through the 70-year conflict with Israel.
He said Palestinian film-makers constantly struggle to "change how the West" views Palestinian people and to get rid of the "stigma" surrounding them.
"Changing opinions in the West is our fight more than doing films for entertainment or box office", he said.
"(The Israelis) are winning on the ground, that is obvious, but the fight of image is still going on - and this is a battle we can do something about".
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Joker: Folie a Deux
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson
Director: Todd Phillips
Rating: 2/5
ADCC AFC Women’s Champions League Group A fixtures
October 3: v Wuhan Jiangda Women’s FC
October 6: v Hyundai Steel Red Angels Women’s FC
October 9: v Sabah FA
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Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
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'Shakuntala Devi'
Starring: Vidya Balan, Sanya Malhotra
Director: Anu Menon
Rating: Three out of five stars
EA Sports FC 25
Developer: EA Vancouver, EA Romania
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4&5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3.5/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
The specs
Engine: Two permanent-magnet synchronous AC motors
Transmission: two-speed
Power: 671hp
Torque: 849Nm
Range: 456km
Price: from Dh437,900
On sale: now
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The biog
Name: Shamsa Hassan Safar
Nationality: Emirati
Education: Degree in emergency medical services at Higher Colleges of Technology
Favourite book: Between two hearts- Arabic novels
Favourite music: Mohammed Abdu and modern Arabic songs
Favourite way to spend time off: Family visits and spending time with friends
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Padmaavat
Director: Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Starring: Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Shahid Kapoor, Jim Sarbh
3.5/5
Employment lawyer Meriel Schindler of Withers Worldwide shares her tips on achieving equal pay
Do your homework
Make sure that you are being offered a fair salary. There is lots of industry data available, and you can always talk to people who have come out of the organisation. Where I see people coming a cropper is where they haven’t done their homework.
Don’t be afraid to negotiate
It’s quite standard to negotiate if you think an offer is on the low side. The job is unlikely to be withdrawn if you ask for money, and if that did happen I’d question whether you want to work for an employer who is so hypersensitive.
Know your worth
Women tend to be a bit more reticent to talk about their achievements. In my experience they need to have more confidence in their own abilities – men will big up what they’ve done to get a pay rise, and to compete women need to turn up the volume.
Work together
If you suspect men in your organisation are being paid more, look your boss in the eye and say, “I want you to assure me that I’m paid equivalent to my peers”. If you’re not getting a straight answer, talk to your peer group and consider taking direct action to fix inequality.