Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Issues Apology Over Handling of Assault Incident
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has recently addressed its members in a public apology concerning its previous silence on the assault against Hamdan Ballal, co-director of the acclaimed documentary No Other Land. This incident occurred in Ballal’s hometown of Susiya, located in the West Bank, where he was reportedly attacked and subsequently arrested.
The controversy was sparked on Monday when Yuval Abraham, an Israeli director and one of the four directors behind No Other Land, disclosed on X (formerly known as Twitter) that a group of settlers assaulted Ballal. Following the assault, it was reported that he was detained by Israeli military personnel, and though he was released the next day, he sustained injuries to both his head and stomach.
In response to the incident, Academy leaders Bill Kramer and Janet Yang released a statement on Wednesday addressing the violent episode. However, their message, which notably did not mention Ballal’s name, suggested that Academy members might have varied opinions on the matter. This lack of acknowledgment led to significant backlash from hundreds of Oscar voters and numerous members from the documentary branch, citing a perceived deficiency in support for the filmmaker.
Recognizing the misstep, Kramer and Yang issued a follow-up statement on Friday. They expressed regret for not explicitly acknowledging Ballal and the film within their earlier communication. “On Wednesday, we sent a letter in response to reports of violence against Oscar winner Hamdan Ballal, co-director of No Other Land, connected to his artistic expression. We regret that we failed to directly acknowledge Mr. Ballal and the film by name,” they stated.
The leaders emphasized their commitment to supporting artistic freedom, declaring, “We sincerely apologize to Mr. Ballal and all artists who felt unsupported by our previous statement. The Academy unequivocally condemns violence of this kind anywhere in the world, and we abhor the suppression of free speech under any circumstances,” they affirmed.