"Thank You for Banking With Us" Receives Best Feature Film Award at Ajyal Film Festival

 

"Thank You for Banking With Us" has received another award at the 12th Ajyal Film Festival 2024, presented by Doha Film Institute.

 

 

 

The film received the Best Feature Film Award in Ajyal Jury Competition 2024.

 

 

Palestinian filmmaker Laila Abbas expressed her gladness at presenting "Thank You for Banking With Us", which was screened within the proceedings of Ajyal Film Festival, confirming that the panel discussion held after screening the film with the audience made her pleased, for they have a distinguished energy.

 

 

They had positive reactions to the film, terminologies expressing their lives, and the black comedy through the events.

 

 

Additionally, Abbas mentioned the difficulties they faced while making the film. For instance, most of the usual crew roles are not available in Palestine; thus, she had to import equipment and crews from abroad.

 

 

Abbas noted that this matter is very complicated; even those taking part in the work have doubts about the filming mechanism, as well as the participating foreigners. Furthermore, Abbas advised the audience to write on a continuous basis and search for friends with the same passion for writing, especially in the same environment.

 

Basically, the film sheds light on the inequality that women face in light of multiple legal systems. It is found all over the world. Indeed, this is the role of cinema; it presents these arguments in a special language to reach the whole world. That's why the film achieved numerous successes in the festivals in which it was screened.

 

Recently, the film won multiple awards, including: Silver Alexander Award from Thessaloniki Film Festival in Greece, as Best Director in “Meet the Neighbors” Competition. Moreover, it received the Best Arab Feature Film Award, along with "Who Do I Belong To", at El Gouna Film Festival. 

 

"Thank You for Banking With Us" is written and directed by Laila Abbas, starring Yasmine Al-Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El-Basha, Ashraf Barhoum, and Adam Khattar.

 

 

It tells the story of two sisters whose father passes away leaving a large sum of money.

 

 

Together, they try to reach a perfect plan to escape with the money before their brother figures it out, as he is legally entitled to receive half of the inheritance.

 

The film is a co-production between Shahinaz Al-Akkad's Lagoonie Film Productions, Palestine Cinema Days founder and artistic director Hanna Atallah and Ronza Kamel, through August Films, as well as Roshanak Behesht Nedjad's In Good Company Films.
 

 

Laila Abbas is a Palestinian filmmaker who studied cinema in Jordan and then film and tv production at Royal Holloway University in the UK. Between 2010 and 2012, Abbas directed three short films before presenting her first feature film "Ice and Dust" in 2014. She took part in several festivals. Subsequently, she worked as a lecturer at the Institute of Modern Media at Al-Quds University.