Rabat – Oscar-winning actress Zoe Saldana has joined “It’s Complicated” as an executive producer, lending her support to the US Palestinian short film ahead of its world premiere at the 22nd HollyShorts Film Festival in Los Angeles this August.
Written by, produced by, and starring US Palestinian filmmaker Iman Karram, the film follows Yara, a Palestinian American screenwriter living in Los Angeles who begins taking online Arabic lessons with Hana, a poet and teacher in Gaza portrayed by Jordanian American actress Dina Shuhaiber.
As their lessons evolve into a close friendship built on shared dreams, humor, and sisterhood, the outbreak of war changes everything.
Left grieving, Yara must confront diasporic guilt while searching for a way to preserve Hana’s story.
The film is directed by Lebanese American filmmaker Darine Hotait. Its production team includes Karram, Alana Duqum, Zoe Marie Jimenez, and Matt Van Tine, with Kais Karram and Zane Karram of Malibu Mutt Studios also producing.
Eli Zavala of Splinter Pictures joins Saldana as an executive producer.
Saldana, who won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 2025 for Emilia Perez, said the project immediately resonated with her.
“Iman has made a deeply personal film about identity, grief, sisterhood and the responsibility artists feel to carry the stories of their communities forward,” she told the Hollywood Reporter.
“I was moved by the tenderness of the relationship at the center of the film and by Iman’s commitment to telling a story rooted in Palestinian womanhood with honesty, humor and heart. I’m proud to support her voice and the team behind ‘It’s Complicated’ as the film begins its festival journey.”
For Karram, the film draws directly from her own experiences. “It was inspired by a real relationship with my Arabic tutor that profoundly reshaped my understanding of identity and how I want to use my voice as an artist,” she said.
The 22nd HollyShorts Film Festival, an Academy Award-qualifying event, will run from August 13-23 in Los Angeles and will showcase more than 400 short films from filmmakers around the world.
