Tunisian director Kaouther Ben Hania received high-profile Hollywood support Wednesday evening at the red carpet world premiere of her Gaza-set drama The Voice of Hind Rajab . Joaquin Phoenix and Rooney Mara were on hand to back the film, which is quickly emerging as one of the most talked-about titles of the fall festival season.

The usual carnival atmosphere of the Venice carpet was subdued for the powerful premiere. Ben Hania, her all-Palestinian cast, Phoenix and Mara all wore black and carried a framed photo of 6-year-old Hind Rajab, the film’s subject and a victim of the war in Gaza. In place of the pumping house music typical of Venice red carpets, a somber ambient score accompanied the arrival, as festival chief Alberto Barbera walked arm in arm with Ben Hania into the Sala Gr

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