Schnabel enters Palestinian-Israeli Conflict with Hiam Abbas

I’m not sure if I’d describe this portion of her acting career as being “in the zone”, European audiences have been watching her for the past decade, while U.S viewers have seen her in art-house fair but only probably spotted her in a key supporting role in Thomas McCarthy’s The Visitor. The actress followed up that role with a pair at this year’s Sundance film fest and she’ll most likely be present at this year’s Cannes fest with Jim Jarmusch’s The Limits of Control. Now she gets to work on Julian Schnabel’s fourth feature film. Not to shabby.  

Variety reports that Hiam Abbas will star in Miral – an adaptation of Italo-Palestinian Rula Jebreal’s book about the real-life Palestinian woman Hind Husseini, who started the Dar Al-Tifl orphanage in Jerusalem in the wake of the 1948 partition of Palestine and the creation of the state of Israel. I hope that the actress has a couple of body doubles and body guards – as Schnabel is looking to shoot the pic entirely on location in Israel and the Palestinian territories.

Jon Kilik will produce with Pathe financing. Principal photography begins April 19 and the film should be ready for a Cannes launch in two years from now.