What started as a project by three Gazan women to teach children animation as a way to process their emotions has since caught the attention of animators around the world. The initiative has grown into a global exchange of stories and messages of solidarity between children in Gaza and people worldwide.
How It All Started
Back in 2012, Haneen Koraz started teaching animation to women, children, and differently abled people. In 2019, Nour A-Jawad and Shorouq Darwish entered the field. Together, they hosted workshops and opened their own studio. However, the war caused it all to come crashing down.
Displaced to Deir El Balah, they stopped teaching. But one day, Haneen bumped into one of her previous students. His desire to continue doing stop motion is what propelled Haneen to start teaching animation to children at the camp.
With few resources at hand, they had to get creative. Since the tents didn’t have any tables or chairs, they asked children to bring items from home such as pots and trays to use as makeshift furniture. As for materials, they reached out to a group with hearing difficulties, whom they had given a gift package to at the end of a previous workshop, asking to borrow the items back.
Beyond Deir El Balah: Visiting other Camps
After producing around 60 films with children aged 9 to 14 years old, they decided to make the initiative mobile this year. Through the “Stories on Screen – Gaza” project, they put on a weekly screening for children at different displacement camps. After screening six stop-motion animation films, they discuss them and give the children time to reflect on what they watched. They also get the chance to learn for themselves how to create their own animations.
Joanna Quinn’s Interest in the Initiative
In September 2024, Haneen shared the film “Life in The Tent” with Joanna Quinn, the BAFTA-winning and three-time Oscar-nominated director and animator. She proceeded to post it on her Instagram account. From then on, she started posting a new film each week to spotlight the children’s work and help the team raise funds to keep the project going.
Her effort didn’t stop there. When she received the Annecy International Animation Film Festival’s Honorary Cristal in June 2025, she dedicated it to Haneen.
“One day, she’ll be stood here, holding one of these, hint, hint. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the kids could come here and watch their films.”
As a way to show the children that they aren’t alone, she also launched in 2025 “To Gaza with Love: A Global Anijam.” The goal was to encourage animators, artists, and studios to create a 10-30 second animated film showcasing their love and support for the Palestinian people. The submission also included a donation of an amount of their choice to help Haneen with funding.
With 329 short films getting submitted from over 50 countries, an interactive global map was created. Viewers can tap on the watermelon icon, which showcases where the film was made, to watch it.
A Message of Support all the Way from Ireland
The global solidarity didn’t end there. This month, the Embassy of the State of Palestine in Ireland worked with Haneen’s team to put on a screening of Irish animated shorts for children in Gaza.
Before the films started, a special surprise was showcased. Video messages were recorded and sent by Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland, Dr. Jilan Wahba, Palestinian Ambassador to Ireland, and Irish animation artists. A written message was also sent by the President of Ireland, Catherine Connoly.
Continuing to Voice Palestinians’ Struggles
Haneen and her team are not just animation instructors. They have become the transmitters of the struggles and lives of Gaza’s children to the international community. The shorts they help produce are being showcased worldwide. This year alone, they were showcased at “Palestine is Still Animated” in Berlin, the Animation Dingle Festival in Ireland, and by Dunya Films in London.
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