“Who is Still Alive,” a documentary directed by Nicolas Wadimoff that gives voice to Gaza humanitarian crisis survivors and refugees, has been selected by the Swiss Federal Office of Culture as Switzerland‘s entry for the Academy Award for best international feature film.
The documentary, which looks at the lives of nine Palestinian people who escaped the crisis in Gaza and explores the loss of home against the backdrop of the Gaza War, had its world premiere in Venice at the 2025 Giornate degli Autori, AKA Venice Days, sidebar.
For director Nicolas Wadimoff, “Who is Still Alive” is his third film dealing with Palestine, following “Aisheen (Still Alive in Gaza)” about the aftermath of Israel’s 2008 air strikes on the Gaza Strip and “The Apollo of Gaza” in 2018.
“Filming with the protagonists had to be organized in South Africa, one of the few countries where Palestinians from the Gaza Strip can enter without a visa,” according to a statement from promotional body Swiss Films.
In early 2026, “Who is Still Alive” scored the Prix de Soleure at the Solothurn Film Festival and was nominated for best documentary at the Swiss Film Awards. The doc has continued to screen at many international fests, most recently in the Panorama Suisse section of this year’s Locarno Film Festival.
