The venue is small but packed with stories. They came from North Africa, the Gulf or the neighborhood down the street to attend the fourth edition of the Haifa Independent Film Festival (HIFF) on March 20-26. Inside the Khashabi Theatre is an eclectic crowd made of internationally recognized filmmakers, emerging talent and a mostly Palestinian audience longing for movies they can relate to.

Haifa, located almost equidistant from Tel Aviv and Beirut, is no ordinary Israeli city. It has become in recent years a growing cultural hub for the local Palestinian population. The city had already been hosting a film festival for more than three decades, showcasing a wide range of Israeli and international movies but few Arab stories. HIFF's organizers saw a need that needed to be fulfilled. Now, the festival organizers say, is time for the coastal city to find its rightful place on the map of Middle Eastern cinema.

“The idea was to give a stage for local talent and connect with the rest of the Arab world … and show locals here a Palestinian cinema that they don't usually get to see,” HIFF director Rojeh Khleif told Al-Monitor. “Local filmmakers create movies and just don't have a place to show them. There are films I have seen overseas that I couldn't watch here,” he added.

The idea for the festival was born from the need for a cultural platform dedicated to Arab Israelis, who often feel excluded.