A Cinema of Survival: Palestinian Minor Transnational Cinema Post-1980

This thesis focuses on the films of contemporary Palestinian filmmakers that have gained a considerable following among arthouse and commercial cinema audiences since the 1980s. Developing а concept of minor transnationalism, the thesis concentrates on the feature and documentary films of Michel Khleifi, Rashid Masharawi, Elia Suleiman, Hany Abu Assad, Najwa Najjar, Annemarie Jacir, Cherien Dabis, Azza El-Hassan, and Jumana Manna. This thesis investigates how we think about the evolution of Palestinian transnational cinema in the post-1980 period, and specifies the ways in which transnational film production engages with the minor form in the works of Palestinian film directors.