26 Feb – It should have been a cause for celebration when Palestinian documentary director Emad Burnat received a Best Documentary nomination for "5 Broken Cameras", but it almost became a tragedy when he and his family was almost sent back to their home country by a U.S. Customs Official at LAX. Burmat was reportedly detained in the Los Angeles airport for 90 minutes by immigration officials, who were not even satisfied with the official Academy Award invitation as proof that the director was to attend. Burmat contacted fellow director Michael Moore, who got help and helped him get released. Michael Moore tweeted about the event to raise awareness. "Apparently the Immigration and Customs officers couldn't understand how a Palestinian could be an Oscar nominee. Emad texted me for help," tweeted Moore.
This terrible controversy should have been a shock to the Oscar nominated director, but Burnat had released a very blunt and moving statement about he and his family's reactions; "After 40 minutes of questions and answers, (my son) Gibreel asked me why we were still waiting in that small room. I simply told him the truth: 'Maybe we'll have to go back.' I could see his heart sink." "Although this was an unpleasant experience, there are more than 500 Israeli checkpoints, roadblocks, and other barriers to movement across our land, and not a single one of us has been spared the experience that my family and I experienced yesterday. Ours was a very minor example of what my people face every day." "Personally I don't think films should have citizenships," says Israeli co-director Guy Davidi. "With Oscar nominees getting treated this way, it is unsurprising, unfortunately, and utterly disgusting." writes Pakistani blogger Zilvia of 'TheMindIsLimitless'. "5 Broken Cameras" is a documentary about a Palestinian farmer's chronicle of his nonviolent resistance to the actions of the Israeli army.