Exeter Dance Festival removes Israeli film ‘Rave’ due to October 7 theme

A film festival has caved in to pressure from anti-Israel campaigners to drop a short film about the Nova festival massacre. 

The Exeter International Dance Film Festival (EDIFF) removed the film Rave, a two-and-a-half-minute dance piece by Israeli choreographer Dor Eldar, from its 2024 line-up. 

The October 7 film was initially accepted into the festival’s programme but the festival's management then told Eldar they had decided to cancel the screening, citing pressure from sponsors and artists, and concerns that they did not want to appear “political”.

The film is a dance portrayal of the Nova festival massacre on October 7, when Hamas terrorists gunned down hundreds of young party-goers.

Eldar condemned the decision, telling Ynet: "Now I understand what antisemitism means." He added that his work had been unfairly targeted.

In a statement, EDIFF organisers said: “The festival has made the difficult decision to remove Rave from our programme. We had to consider our audience and artists, and we are under pressure from the artistic community.

"The subject of the piece is controversial and causes tension, and as a non-political organisation, we must be extremely cautious about where we shine our spotlight.”

The festival clarified that the decision was not a boycott of Israeli films, but rather a response to the “political” nature of the work.

“EDIFF does not boycott Israeli films, but we had to make the difficult decision to boycott anything specifically relating to events impacting ongoing conflicts worldwide,” the statement continued.

A spokesperson from the festival said that concerns had been raised about the film's perceived bias.

"We consulted a conflict resolution specialist who agreed that the film highlights a politically contentious and incendiary situation," the spokesperson said.

As a result, the film was withdrawn and a full refund was offered to Eldar.

Founded in the UK’s south west, EDIFF is a not-for-profit festival that showcases world-class independent dance films, talks and workshops.

Each year, the festival, which took place in October, attracts an audience and artists from around the globe.

EDIFF emphasised its commitment to maintaining a non-political stance. "As a responsible arts organisation, we have to remain responsive to current events. However, ultimately all decisions concerning official festival selections are wholly made by the festival organisers," the spokesperson concluded.