The Journalism Department organized the 1st Annual Documentary Film Festival at An-Najah National University, which included nine documentary films edited and directed by students from the Journalism Department. The students were supervised throughout the process by Canadian volunteer Kloie Picot, who approached the task with great energy and professionalism.

Prof. Maher Natsheh, Vice President for Academic Affairs, opened the festival, which was sponsored by the United Nations Population Fund for Activities (UNFPA). The films focused on gender, housing, social and humanitarian issues within the Palestinian community.

The idea behind this festival was to encourage the Journalism Department’s students to produce their own films and run their own projects, so that they will have the training and experience to produce more important documentary films in the future.

The format of the event allowed for a lively discussion period after each film, in which the students responsible were able to address questions and comments from audience. At the end of the festival, the committee of experts that judged the event awarded prizes to the top four films, which included awards of $500, $400, $300, and $100 respectively. In addition, members of the audience were encouraged to vote for the ‘fan favorite.’ All students that participated were given a letter and certificate of appreciation for all their excellent efforts.

The festival was very well attended, and was highly successful. Hopefully, it will be the first of many such events at An-Najah.