Israel’s Oscar entry dropped from Swiss film festival

Israel’s entry for the 2027 Academy Awards, Tell Me Everything, has been withdrawn from a Swiss queer film festival following a boycott campaign linked to the war in Gaza.

The film had been selected for the 2026 programme of Geneva’s Everybody’s Perfect queer film festival. Organisers later cancelled its two scheduled screenings after receiving messages warning of a boycott from several pro-Palestinian groups.

The campaign involved Palestine, Filmer C’est Exister, the Student Coordination for Palestine at the University of Geneva, BDS Geneva, CRAQ and Marad.

Directed by Moshe Rosenthal, Tell Me Everything centres on a 12-year-old boy who discovers a secret about his father during the HIV/AIDS crisis of the 1980s. The film premiered at Sundance earlier this year and was later chosen as Israel’s submission for the Best International Feature category at the 2027 Oscars.

Following the boycott campaign, festival organisers asked Rosenthal and the film’s producers to clarify their positions on the Israeli government and the war in Gaza.

Rosenthal and Green Productions said they did not represent the Israeli government and had neither financed nor produced films supporting its current policies.

Despite the response, the festival proceeded with the cancellation. Artistic director Sylvie Cachin said the decision was made to prevent the controversy from overshadowing the festival’s opening.

The cancellation has renewed debate over whether Israeli filmmakers and cultural productions should be considered separately from the policies of the Israeli state.

Pro-Palestinian campaigners argue that cultural events can contribute to the international normalisation of Israel and have called for boycotts of Israeli cultural institutions and works.

The episode is part of a broader international debate over the role of culture during the Gaza war, with artists, festivals and cultural organisations facing pressure over their associations with Israel.