Cinema Jenin

Cinema Jenin was a movie theater and cultural-revival project in the center of Jenin, in the West Bank. The venue occupied a prominent urban site near the old church, the market, and major transportation routes. Its original auditorium had approximately 250 seats on the first floor and a further 200 seats in a balcony. The theater closed in 1987 and remained unused for more than three decades before an international charitable initiative sought to restore it as a public cinema and community space. The rebuilding project was led by German filmmaker Marcus Vetter and a German nongovernmental organization, with participation from Palestinian and international volunteers. The initiative was presented as an effort to restore cinema-going and cultural life in Jenin, while also creating a space for education, dialogue, and practical training. Financial and public support came from a range of international contributors, including the German Foreign Office, musician Roger Waters, and musician Prince. The renovated complex was substantially smaller in seating capacity than the original theater but was designed as a broader cultural venue. It included more than 300 seats, an outdoor café, an art-gallery area, a children's park and playground, and a library supported by Germany's Goethe-Institut. Cinema Jenin reopened in August 2010. The reopening program featured The Heart of Jenin, a film associated with the story of Ismael Khatib and the donation of his son's organs. The intended program included feature films, documentaries, comedies, children's films, Arabic classics, and contemporary productions. Organizers also planned multiple daily screenings, filmmaking workshops, computer and English classes, and other community activities. When the planned film schedule struggled to develop, the venue also screened football matches and hosted related activities. The project attracted international attention because it combined cultural reconstruction with a stated peace-building mission. It also generated local criticism. Some residents objected to the involvement of foreign institutions, including early cooperation with Israeli organizations, and feared that the project could be interpreted as normalizing unequal political conditions. There were also disputes over the stated preference for Palestinian labor and materials. Critics argued that imported materials and European instructors were used more extensively than originally presented, partly because the project received substantial international publicity. Local support weakened further amid allegations circulated in the community concerning behavior at the project's guesthouse, including claims that unmarried men and women stayed together and that alcohol was consumed there. These allegations were connected to calls for a boycott, although the available reference material does not establish them as proven findings. In early 2011, death threats reportedly circulated through local mosques, prompting the evacuation of foreign nationals involved in the project at the request of their governments. Audience numbers subsequently declined, and the cinema did not achieve the sustainable commercial performance hoped for by its backers. The building was demolished in 2017, approximately seven years after reopening, to make way for a commercial center. Cinema Jenin therefore became both a short-lived entertainment venue and a symbol of the opportunities and tensions surrounding internationally supported cultural projects in Palestine. Its history has continued to be examined through documentaries, including Markus Vetter's 2012 Cinema Jenin: The Story of a Dream, Maurizio Fantoni Minnella's 2011 Tonight on Jenin, and Alex Bakri's 2025 Habibi Hussein. These films preserve different perspectives on the renovation, the community's response, and the relationship between the German organizers and Palestinian workers such as projectionist Hussein Darbi.

Cinema Jenin developed from the remains of a former movie theater in central Jenin. The original venue occupied a strategically visible location close to the city's old church, market, and main transportation routes. Its auditorium reportedly contained roughly 250 seats on the first floor and another 200 seats in a balcony. The theater closed in 1987 and then stood vacant for more than thirty years. A German-led charitable initiative later proposed restoring the building and reintroducing regular film exhibition to Jenin. The project was associated with filmmaker Marcus Vetter, who headed the German nongovernmental organization involved in the renovation. Palestinian workers and volunteers participated alongside international contributors. The German Foreign Office provided sponsorship, while Roger Waters and Prince were also identified as donors. The project sought to position the cinema as more than a commercial theater: it was intended to provide film screenings, educational workshops, public recreation, and a setting for cultural exchange. The renovated site had plush seating for more than 300 people, together with an outdoor café, gallery space, a children's park and playground, and a library supported by the Goethe-Institut. Organizers planned a broad program of fiction films, documentaries, comedies, children's productions, Arabic classics, and recent movies. The proposed schedule included six screenings per day, as well as workshops in filmmaking, computing, and English. Football matches were also shown when the regular movie program did not develop as planned. Cinema Jenin reopened in August 2010. Its grand reopening featured The Heart of Jenin, a film connected to the story of Ismael Khatib and his son's organ donation. The reopening received extensive international coverage and was presented as a cultural milestone for Jenin. However, the project faced criticism from parts of the local population. Some residents objected to its peace-oriented messaging and to occasional cooperation with Israeli institutions at the beginning of the initiative. They feared that the project could encourage normalization without addressing the underlying balance of power. Others criticized the gap between the organizers' stated preference for Palestinian materials and labor and the later use of imported materials and European teachers. The cinema also became the subject of allegations involving conduct at its guesthouse, including claims that unmarried men and women slept there together and that alcohol was consumed. These claims contributed to a local boycott and declining attendance, although the available reference material does not verify them as established facts. In early 2011, death threats reportedly circulated in mosques, and foreign participants were evacuated at the request of their governments. The combination of political controversy, local opposition, security concerns, and weak audience numbers undermined the project's prospects. By 2017 the building was demolished to make room for a commercial center. The cinema's short operating period nevertheless generated several documentary accounts. Maurizio Fantoni Minnella's Tonight on Jenin appeared in 2011, while Marcus Vetter's Cinema Jenin: The Story of a Dream was released in 2012. In 2025, Alex Bakri, who had served as the original director of photography for Vetter's project, released Habibi Hussein. The film follows Hussein Darbi, a projectionist who had worked at the cinema before its closure and later helped restore old projectors. Bakri's documentary presents a more critical view of the relationship between the German NGO and Palestinian personnel. Cinema Jenin is consequently remembered as both an ambitious cultural reconstruction and an example of the difficulties faced by externally supported institutions operating amid political conflict and local social pressures.

• 2025

  Habibi Hussein released

  [1]Cinema Jeninen.wikipedia.org

  Alex Bakri's documentary revisited the project through the experience of projectionist Hussein Darbi.

• 2017

  Building demolished

  [1]Cinema Jeninen.wikipedia.org

  The cinema building was demolished to enable construction of a commercial center.

• 2012

  Restoration documentary released

  [1]Cinema Jeninen.wikipedia.org

  Marcus Vetter released Cinema Jenin: The Story of a Dream about the project.

• 2011

  Foreign participants evacuated

  [1]Cinema Jeninen.wikipedia.org

  Reported death threats led to the evacuation of foreign nationals associated with the project.

• 2010

  Renovated cinema reopens

  [1]Cinema Jeninen.wikipedia.org

  After an international renovation effort, Cinema Jenin reopened in August with The Heart of Jenin as its grand-opening film.

• 1987

  Original cinema closes

  [1]Cinema Jeninen.wikipedia.org

  The original Cinema Jenin venue ceased operations and remained vacant for more than three decades.

A community cinema and cultural-revival project combining film exhibition with education, public recreation, and an internationally sponsored peace-building mission.

• Film exhibition · 2010

  Cinema screenings

  The venue was intended to screen a mixed program of fiction films, documentaries, comedies, children's films, Arabic classics, and contemporary productions. Football matches were also screened when the planned film schedule did not gain traction.

• Cultural venue · 2010

  Community cultural facilities

  The renovated complex expanded beyond auditorium use, adding an outdoor café, art-gallery space, a children's park and playground, and a library sponsored by the Goethe-Institut.

• Education and training · 2010

  Educational workshops

  The project planned workshops in filmmaking, computers, and English as part of its ambition to make the cinema a community learning center rather than only a screening venue.

• 2011

  Local controversy and reported death threats

  Criticism focused on foreign involvement, alleged normalization concerns, imported materials and European instructors, and unverified allegations about conduct at the guesthouse. A reported series of death threats led to the evacuation of foreign project participants.

  Source

Read more

• 2010Cinema Jenin restoration and reopening

  Jenin · West Bank

  An international charitable initiative renovated the long-vacant cinema with Palestinian and international participation and promoted the venue as a center for film, education, recreation, and cultural exchange.

  Outcome. The venue reopened in August 2010 but later struggled with controversy, security concerns, weak attendance, and insufficient commercial returns.

  Source

• 2017

  Demolish the cinema buildingStrategy

  Background

  The reopened venue did not generate sufficient profit for investors.

  Action taken

  The building was demolished and the site was allocated for a commercial center.

  Aftermath

  Cinema Jenin ceased to exist as a physical venue, although its history continued through documentary films and public discussion.

  Source

• 2010

  Expand the theater into a cultural centerStrategy

  Background

  The renovation initiative sought to rebuild public cultural life in Jenin after the original cinema had been vacant since 1987.

  Action taken

  The project added workshops, a library, children's facilities, gallery space, and a café alongside the auditorium.

  Aftermath

  The broader mission attracted international attention but also intensified debate about foreign influence and the project's relationship with local society.

  Source

• 2010

  Launch a multi-genre screening programProduct launch

  Background

  Organizers wanted to rebuild a regular cinema audience in Jenin.

  Action taken

  They planned multiple daily screenings spanning international, Arabic, documentary, comedy, children's, and contemporary films.

  Aftermath

  The planned program struggled to take off, and football screenings were used as an alternative attraction.

  Source

1. 1Cinema Jeninen.wikipedia.org