From Ground Zero: Stories From Gaza review – scenes of ordinary life in extremis

T his collection of short films from Gaza film-makers gives a mosaic of images, ideas and microvignettes of what life is like for civilians under nonstop attack, sometimes improvising semi-fictionalised scenes within the scenes of devastation. It is a humanitarian artistic project in which the words “Hamas” and “Israel” are not mentioned; instead we hear the voices of young and old, male and female, people for whom the violence and the grief have become part of the fabric of everyday life. Perhaps the simple fact of life going on there, with stoicism and often with humour, is a remarkable thing in itself.

In Nidal Damo’s Everything Is Fine, a budding standup comedian wanders around, wondering how to ply his trade when all the venues are rubble; a class of schoolkids learn how to create