NAZA Joins the Venice 2026 Competition as Its Only Documentary

Summary

• NAZA has officially been added to the Competition of the 83rd Venice Film Festival.
• It is the only documentary among the 21 films competing for the Golden Lion.
• It is directed by Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor, co-directors of the Oscar-winning No Other Land.
• The film builds on journalistic investigations into Israeli strikes in Gaza and civilian casualties.
• Its world premiere is scheduled for September 10, 2026, at the Sala Grande.

NAZA, the new documentary by Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor, has officially been added to the Competition of the 83rd Venice International Film Festival and will compete for the Golden Lion.

La Biennale di Venezia announced on August 24 that the film completes the Venezia 83 Competition lineup. Abraham and Szor were two of the four co-directors of the Oscar-winning No Other Land, while NAZA is the only feature documentary among the 21 films competing for the Golden Lion this year.

The addition carries particular weight because this is not simply another premiere on the Venice schedule. NAZA builds on years of journalistic investigation into Israeli strikes in Gaza and examines how military decisions that may result in civilian casualties are made. The festival’s official synopsis uses substantially stronger language to describe the film’s subject; that wording represents the position of the filmmakers and the work itself rather than an independent conclusion by PTTL.

The only documentary competing for the Golden Lion

NAZA runs for 80 minutes, is a United Kingdom production and features Hebrew and English dialogue. Its official premiere is scheduled for September 10 at 5:15 p.m. in the Sala Grande at the Palazzo del Cinema, with the directors, producers, Guardian journalists and the film’s official delegation expected to attend.

The 83rd Venice International Film Festival runs from September 2 through September 12, 2026, and NAZA completes the 21-film official Competition lineup. Filmmakers competing this year also include Danny Boyle, Casey Affleck, Hirokazu Kore-eda and creators from a wide range of international cinema traditions.

According to the Associated Press, it is the only documentary in this year’s Competition, making its presence particularly unusual in a section dominated by narrative features.

What NAZA investigates

The film was largely shot at night from rooftops in Tel Aviv and seeks to investigate the mechanisms behind Israeli airstrikes in Gaza and their impact on civilians.

According to the Guardian, the documentary expands on previous reporting published by +972 Magazine, Local Call and the Guardian between 2023 and 2025. Those investigations examined targeting systems, military procedures and estimates of potential civilian casualties.

Reuters notes that Israel maintains its military operations targeted Hamas and that measures were taken to reduce civilian casualties. NAZA, for its part, investigates and challenges the way that targeting process operated.

This distinction is essential: the claims presented by the documentary are the subject of its investigation and should be evaluated alongside the evidence it presents once the film is publicly screened.

What the title NAZA means

The title was not chosen arbitrarily.

According to the filmmakers and the Guardian, NAZA refers to a military acronym used by Israeli intelligence to describe estimates of anticipated civilian casualties during a strike.

That concept sits at the heart of the film: not only what happens when a strike is carried out, but how the potential human cost is calculated in advance and what criteria are used when an operation is approved or rejected.

For that reason, NAZA is positioned more as an investigative journalistic documentary than as a conventional chronicle of wartime events.

From No Other Land back to the big screen

Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor became internationally known as members of the four-person creative team behind No Other Land, alongside Basel Adra and Hamdan Ballal.

No Other Land followed Palestinian communities in Masafer Yatta in the West Bank and won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature at the 97th Academy Awards in 2025.

PTTL’s coverage of the work has extended beyond its awards success. In 2025, we reported on the death of Palestinian activist and No Other Land collaborator Odeh Hathalin in the West Bank, a case that again drew attention to people and communities connected with the production.

Abraham and Szor’s return with NAZA shows the two filmmakers continuing in the field of political and investigative documentary, this time shifting the focus from the West Bank to Gaza and from documenting a community to examining the mechanisms of military decision-making themselves.

The Guardian produces, Jonathan Glazer joins the team

NAZA is a joint production between the Guardian and James Wilson’s JW Films, with Jonathan Glazer serving as executive producer.

Wilson and Glazer previously worked together on The Zone of Interest, which won two Academy Awards, including Best International Feature Film.

The Guardian’s involvement is also notable because NAZA is not simply an independent documentary that later drew on published reporting. It directly extends investigative journalism in which the news organisation itself participated and translates that work into a cinematic format.

PTTL has also covered the wider debate developing within the film industry around Gaza, including an international initiative signed by thousands of film professionals, among them Yorgos Lanthimos, Javier Bardem and Mark Ruffalo. NAZA’s selection in Venice shows that the issue remains highly present within major international film festivals as well.

Venice gives the documentary a place in its main Competition

The festival’s decision to add NAZA directly to Venezia 83 Competition carries more significance than a special or out-of-competition screening.

The documentary is competing for the Golden Lion alongside the festival’s major narrative features.

Abraham and Szor are also among the filmmakers making their Venice Competition debut this year. The festival lists ten directors making their first appearance in the section across its 21 selected films.

NAZA therefore holds a distinctive position on two levels: as the Competition’s only documentary and as a politically charged work rooted in investigative journalism.

What we think

NAZA’s inclusion in Venice’s main Competition is significant cinematic news on its own. The fact that it is the only documentary among 21 Golden Lion contenders demonstrates the weight the festival has given the film even before its world premiere.

Its subject also demands particularly careful journalistic treatment. The documentary presents serious claims about military systems and civilian casualties in Gaza. Until the film is screened and the evidence it presents can be assessed, those claims should be clearly attributed to the filmmakers and to the investigation on which the documentary is based.

From a cinema perspective, however, the return of two No Other Land filmmakers, combined with production by the Guardian and the involvement of Jonathan Glazer, makes NAZA one of the Venice premieres most likely to generate substantial discussion this year.

Frequently asked questions

What is NAZA?

It is a new investigative documentary by Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor examining Israeli military operations in Gaza and the way potential civilian casualties are assessed.

When does it premiere?

Its official world premiere is scheduled for September 10, 2026 at 5:15 p.m. in the Sala Grande at the Venice Film Festival.

Who are the directors?

It is directed by Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor, two of the four co-directors of the Oscar-winning No Other Land.

Is it competing for the Golden Lion?

Yes. NAZA is part of Venezia 83 Competition and is the only documentary among its 21 films.

Who produced the film?

It is produced by the Guardian and JW Films, with Jonathan Glazer serving as executive producer.