Projects
Nation Estate
Elevator Advertisements
Nation Estate is a nine-minute sci-fi short offering a dystopian yet humorous approach to the deadlock in the Middle East.
With a mixture of computer generated imagery (CGI), live actors and arabesque electronica, Nation Estate explores a vertical solution to Palestinian statehood. In Sansour's film, Palestinians have their state in the form of a single skyscraper: the Nation Estate. One colossal high-rise houses the entire Palestinian population, now finally living the high life.
Each city has its own floor: Jerusalem on the 13th floor, Ramallah on the 14th floor, Sansour's native Bethlehem on the 21st, and so on. Intercity trips previously marred by checkpoints are now made by elevator.
As the main mode of transportation, the Nation Estate elevators become platforms for communication, and the elevator ads take on a life of their own. No matter if they convey official, social, political or commercial messages, the ads hone in on the core issues of life under occupation and address future problems reminiscent of those standing in the way of any progress today – suggesting that no negotiated solution will work without resolving these central issues.