Lyd
Available screening types
Virtual
In-person
Available until
Jan 16, 2026
Speakers Available
Available in
Canada, United States of America
About the film
Lyd was once a thriving, bustling Palestinian metropolis until it was conquered during the war that established the State of Israel in 1948 and renamed Lod. In the process of becoming an Israeli city, hundreds of Lyd's Palestinian residents were massacred by Israeli forces, and most of the city's 50,000 Palestinian residents were forced out of their homes. Today the city has a Jewish majority and a Palestinian minority and is divided by racism and violence. The film Lyd dares to imagine an alternate reality where the Israeli occupation never occured and Palestinians of all religions (Muslims, Christians, and Jews) live free from the trauma of the past and the violence of the present.
Genre
Documentary
Runtime
1h 19m
Released
2024
Director
Rami Younis, Sarah Ema Friedland
Producer
Sawsan Asfar, Sarah Ema Friedland, Fivel Rothberg, Rami Younis
Awards & recognition
Amman International Film Festival 2023
FIPRESCI Prize for Arab Feature Documentary
Amman International Film Festival 2023
Jury Award for Arab Feature Documentary
What people are saying
‘"Including various cinematic forms—cartoon animation, vérité interviews, archival footage, written text—Lyd resists a singular mode of recovering and discussing lost history. These formal gestures inform its narrative, which refuses to tell the story of Lyd as a smooth progression of events. Instead, these contrasting tones allow the documentary to address the contemporary expulsion Palestinians are now enduring, tracing a continuum of displacement, war, refusal, and exploitation."‘
Lucy Sternbach
‘"It is the perfect time for a film like Lyd, a work that draws a clear line between the sins of the past and our present reality and vociferously argues why contextualizing the present within that broader history is crucial in determining the future."‘
Daniel Lima
‘"All of these rich stories document conditions under the occupation, ask questions of memory’s longevity and legacy’s potency, and trace the contours of an ongoing physical and emotional fight to keep the idea of a free Palestine alive inside of every person, young and old."‘
Chris Cassingham
‘“Ambitiously tackling perhaps the most controversial geopolitical issue in the world, and doing so in under 80 minutes, the filmmakers offer a provocative cri de coeur for a free Palestine. A difficult and unflinching film, but also as hopeful as one could be in the current climate.”‘
Pat Mullen