On 20 April 2011, a tribute event was held in London in memory of director, actor and filmmaker Juliano Mer Khamis. Juliano was assassinated on 4 April 2011 in Jenin, in the occupied West Bank, where he established the Freedom Theatre in 2006. The son of a Arna Mer, a Jewish woman, and Saliba Khamis, a Palestinian man, Juliano described himself as “100 percent Palestinian and 100 percent Jewish.”

The memorial event was co-organised by JNews, SOAS Palestine Society, the Palestine Film Foundation, and Amnesty International UK.

Speakers on the night included friends and colleagues of Juliano;

Ala Hlehel, a Palestinian playwright, poet and writer, and the editor-in-chief of Qadita.net

Stephan Wolf-Schoenburg, Freedom Theatre, Jenin. Stephan is an actor and teacher at the Freedom Theatre. He was a close friend of Juliano and a witness to his assassination.

Osnat Trabelsi, Trabelsi Productions, a friend of Juliano and his family’s for twenty years, producer of Arna’s Children and director of the first International Human Rights Film Festival in Israel/Palestine in 2000.

Udi Aloni, Head Coach, Cinema Department, the Freedom Theatre. Udi was a close friend of Juliano’s and was working with him on two films at the time of his death.

Chairing the evening was Dr. Dina Matar.

This is a short film of the evening

Also available is a short film made by the Freedom Theatre participants and Udi Aloni, in tribute to Juliano’s activism.

Filmmaker Leah Borromeo shared her thoughts as she filmed the event.

• 
• 

• AIUK -
• Freedom Theatre -
• Jenin -
• JNews -
• juliano mer-khamis -
• memorial event -
• Palestine Film Fund -
• short film -
• SOAS -
• video

Back to Features