No Other Land will compete in the Documentary Film segment, while Happy Holidays will compete in the New Directors Film segment of the festival.
No Other Land
The documentary tells the story of Basel Adra, a young Palestinian activist from Masafer Yatta in the West Bank, who has been fighting against the mass expulsion of his community due to Israel's occupation since he was a child.
Adra documents the gradual destruction of villages in his area, where Israeli soldiers are systematically demolishing homes and displacing residents.
Eventually, he encounters Yuval Abraham, an Israeli journalist who assists him in his struggle. From here, their alliance forms.
The significant disparity between their situations has challenged their relationship: Adra lives under military occupation, while Abraham enjoys freedom and lacks restrictions.
The documentary is directed by four Palestinian-Israeli activists: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, and Hamdan Ballal.
No Other Land won the Berlinale Documentary Award and the Panorama Audience Award for Best Documentary Film at the 74th Berlin International Film Festival.
Happy Holidays
The film, directed by Oscar-nominated Palestinian filmmaker Scandar Copti, follows the story of a Palestinian family living in Israel, focusing on the difficulties they face in a male-dominated society as they navigate their personal struggles and family dynamics.
It is divided into four chapters, each telling the story from a different character's perspective, weaving together multiple storylines to create a drama centred on family affairs.
Happy Holidays stars Manar Shehab, Wafaa Aoun, Toufic Danial, and Meirav Memoresky.
The Palestinian film won the Best Screenplay Award at the 81st Venice Film Festival in early October.
The films directed by Copti, born in Jaffa in historic Palestine, explore the social issues faced by the Arab-Palestinian society in Israel.
The Chicago International Film Festival was launched in 1964, making it North America's longest-running competitive film festival.
This year, the festival showcases over 120 feature films and 70 short films across all sections. Besides the Egyptian entry, it includes productions from Tunisia, Morocco, and Palestine.
All films are screened in six competition segments, including the International Feature Film, New Directors Film, Documentary Film, Outlook Film, Short Film, and City & State Film.
In addition, the festival includes non-competitive segments, such as After Dark Film and Black Perspectives Film.
The festival will host various industry-related events, panel discussions, and workshops.
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