Palestine Comedy Club
Synopsis
There are no comedy clubs - or even a tradition of stand-up comedy - in Palestine. The country is also carved up by walls, fences and checkpoints that create divisions in culture and quality of life between towns. As such, developing a comedy show that can speak to these very different audiences is a herculean task, and the comedians face many challenges in connecting with their fellow Palestinians across these divides.
Despite the cultural and security challenges of going on tour, the five Palestinian comedians Alaa, Hanna, Diana, Khalil, Ebaa and their British director, Sam manage to cross checkpoints and borders to perform in theatres in Palestine and Israel. Audiences flock to the shows and the tour gains momentum through increasing public demand. Word spreads internationally and they are invited to London for a series of gigs starting, tragically, on October 7th, 2023, just as war breaks out at home. Suddenly, the mission to connect audiences with thoughtful humanity becomes an existential imperative.
Details
- Year
- 2025
- Type of film
- Features
- Running time
- 95 min
- Format
- Digital
- Director
-
Alaa Aliabdallah 1st Feature
- Producer
- Charlotte Knowles
- Executive Producer
- Carri Twigg, Mikail Chowdhury, Farzana Rahman
- Editor
- Libby Knowles
- Director of Photography
- Alaa Aliabdallah
- Sound
- Rana Eid
- Composer
- Khalil Al-Batran
- Principal cast
- With contributions from: Alaa Shehada, Hanna Shsmmas, Diana Swity
Categories
Production Status
Production Company
Tough Crowd Limited
Charlotte KnowlesUnit D228 Parkhall Business Centre
62 Tritton Road
London
SE21 8DE
Sales Company
Page updates
This page was last updated on 10th June 2025. Please let us know if we need to make any amendments or request edit access by clicking below.
See also
You may also be interested in other relevant projects in the database.

Director: Hannah Berryman
Year: 2024
A landmark feature documentary about astronaut Eileen Collins, the first woman to pilot and command the Space Shuttle.<br /> Eileen’s incredible journey starts with her smalltown beginnings, sees her smash through many glass ceilings, and culminates in four dramatic space shuttle missions, the last being possibly the most dangerous and most important of them all.<br /> At its heart the film is the moving human drama of one family, where a mother’s extraordinary career takes us straight to the big philosophical question of what is the level of acceptable risk in human endeavour? <br /> This film celebrates Commander Collins’ trailblazing NASA career which opened the way for women to become spacecraft pilots and commanders, and proved a perfect riposte to a previous generation of male astronauts who thought there was no place for women to lead the way in space. <br /> Official Selection DOC NYC 2024 - World premiere<br /> Official Selection CPH:DOX 2025 - European premiere

Director: Nick Quested
Year: 2025
Documenting the January 6 assault on the US Capitol - Filmmaker Nick Quested was embedded with the Proud Boys, and other far-right groups during the months leading up to the insurrection, capturing exclusive footage of figures including Enrique Tarrio and Stewart Rhodes that was used as evidence in hearings of the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol, and as part of their larger investigation.