The Horse of Jenin

The Horse of Jenin

“The horse in Arabic is a symbol of freedom. But to us, this horse is much more. This horse is us.”

2025 · 80 min · Comedy

Built from the debris of a major invasion, the Horse of Jenin sculpture became a constant presence in Alaa’s life growing up in Occupied Palestine. It stood proudly in the center of the city for twenty years, symbolizing hope and resistance. Then, on October 29, 2023, an Israeli bulldozer entered the city, ripping the sculpture from its place — and from its people. Now, Alaa is left wondering… What happened to the horse? Fresh from an acclaimed run at the 2025 Edinburgh Fringe Festival and combining storytelling, mask, and stand-up comedy, The Horse of Jenin is constructed from the fragments of Palestinian actor and comedian Alaa Shehada’s own memories and stands as an ode to the power of imagination and the resilience it brings.

Directed by Katrien van Beurden · Written by Alaa Shehada

Your Rating

Cast

Alaa Shehada

Make it a double feature

3h 20m together

The Horse of Jenin

King of Katoren

Both from Katrien van Beurden.

More from Katrien van BeurdenSee all →

King of Katoren

King of Katoren · 2012

King of Katoren

MovieFamilyAdventure

The seventeen year old Stach is faced with five impossible assignments he has to complete in order to become king. Things do not go as easily as the boisterous Stach had expected, especially when he is confronted with matters of life and death.

Swanenburg

Swanenburg · 2021

When patriarch Jack Praal is confronted with his biggest fear and his youngest son Dirk is linked to the death of a woman, the family gets trapped into a web of intrigue and betrayal. They put their own interests aside in order to save everything. But not everyone is playing a fair game, which seems to result in the inevitable downfall of the once so close Praal family.

BuZa

When the new Minister of Foreign Affairs takes office, all sorts of skeletons come tumbling out of the closet, not only politically, but especially personally.

De vuurwerkramp

De vuurwerkramp · 2025

De vuurwerkramp

Residents, police and the municipal government of the Dutch city of Enschede face loss, guilt and responsibility as they grapple with the May 2000 explosion of a fireworks depot that wipes a working-class suburb off the map.

Flikken Rotterdam

Flikken Rotterdam · 2016

Flikken Rotterdam

Flikken Rotterdam takes place in Rotterdam, and is after Flikken Maastricht the second Dutch spin-off of the Flemish show Flikken.

Dokter Tinus

Dokter Tinus · 2012

SeriesComedyDrama

A successful vascular surgeon is suddenly confronted with a blood phobia, making it impossible for him to exercise his job in the hospital. He moves from the capital to the countryside to work as the GP of a village where he only knows his aunt. His predecessor was well liked, so his new community is less than welcoming. The empathic capabilities of the doctor leaves much to be desired, making it even harder for him to win his place in the close-knit community.

The Crash

The Crash · 2022

SeriesDramaMystery

Following the catastrophic crash of a large El Al cargo aircraft into Amsterdam's 'Bijlmer' high-rise district in October 1992, a local young veterinarian and two journalists find themselves drawn into a years-long investigation into the many puzzling questions, about the disaster and its aftermath, the powers that be seem determined to keep unanswered.

Flikken Maastricht

Flikken Maastricht · 2007

Flikken Maastricht

SeriesCrimeAction & Adventure

Former Amsterdam police detective Floris Wolfs has been transferred to the police department of the south-Dutch country town Maastricht. His metropolitan experience nicely complements the local expertise of his new country colleagues, who know the folks. Slowly he fits in, while solving countless crimes together with his female partner Eva van Dongen.

Lieve Mama

Lieve Mama · 2020

SeriesCrimeDrama

The Storm

The Storm · 2009

A fictional story within the historical context of the disastrous flood that engulfed the Dutch coastal province of Zeeland in 1953. When their farmhouse is destroyed by the flood, teenage mother Julia gets separated from her baby boy, whom she kept hidden in a box. She is saved from drowning by a young air force lieutenant, who agrees to go help looking for Julia's little son.

All You Need Is Love

All You Need Is Love · 2018

All You Need Is Love

MovieComedyRomance

When popular TV show host Dr. Love goes missing ahead of the annual Christmas special, a zany search for his replacement and holiday romance ensues.

If Yes, Okay

If Yes, Okay · 2023

The Spijkerbergs are an absurdly rich family, but they are also richly absurd. The father – a foolish, hotshot financier – collects miniature dioramas of historical atrocities as a hobby. Mother is a has-been prima donna fighting against the vagaries of age and fame. Inheriting their privilege and casual cruelty is daughter Amy, a rebellious if somewhat insular teenager longing to break out of her gilded cage. To gain a semblance of control over her cocooned existence, Amy produces an autobiographical mock-Kabuki performance that parodies her family.

The Resurrection of a Bastard

The Resurrection of a Bastard · 2013

The Resurrection of a Bastard

A criminal from Amsterdam barely surviving a liquidation. An old Frisian farmer bent on revenge. An illegal immigrant with uncertain prospects. Eventually, they meet under an ancient oak tree. Beyond the last town.

Kidnap - Bo's Most Exciting Holiday Ever

Kidnap - Bo's Most Exciting Holiday Ever · 2015

Kidnap - Bo's Most Exciting Holiday Ever

MovieAdventureFamily

Bo is the only child of rich parents and goes to a private school in Switzerland. When the holiday starts, he is kidnapped and his rich, safe and secluded world is turned upside down. During their long cross-country trip back to the Netherlands to meet the ransom deadline, Bo and his abductor Fred, a gruff lovable loser, forge a strange friendship. Bo discovers in Fred the father that he misses and learns to stand up for himself. Fred is confronted with where he has always been running from and learns to become a father.

Goodbye Stranger

Goodbye Stranger · 2023

Goodbye Stranger

MovieDramaComedy

A day in the life of Paul who has everything going for him. He has a dream job, a wonderful house and a girlfriend. But when, to his horror, he sees his dream foreign promotion at the world's biggest music streamer in jeopardy, his carefree summer day turns into a day he has to consider his choices. An unexpected encounter with his ex-boyfriend upsets Paul’s reality further. Has he given up his old life and ideals too soon?

Tom Adelaar

Tom Adelaar · 2018

An Amsterdam telemarketer of Surinamese descent suffers an existential crisis of identity when he finds fortune and belonging by using a typically Dutch name to boost his sales.

More Like This

Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan · 2006

Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

Kazakh journalist Borat Sagdiyev travels to America to make a documentary. As he zigzags across the nation, Borat meets real people in real situations with hysterical consequences. His backwards behavior generates strong reactions around him exposing prejudices and hypocrisies in American culture.

Rate this film

Your ratings make Midnight smarter