Some 380 film stars such as Almodóvar, Bardem, Delpy and Law denounce the "genocide" in Gaza and the "silence" of culture.

A group of 380 film stars, including Pedro Almodóvar, Javier Bardem, Costa-Gavras, and Mark Ruffalo, denounce the "genocide" taking place in Gaza and the "silence" of the cultural world. "We cannot remain silent while genocide is taking place in Gaza," they state in an op-ed appearing in Tuesday's edition of the daily newspaper Libèration, which also asks: "Why this silence?"

The article, published to coincide with the start of the 78th Cannes Film Festival , recalls the death of Palestinian photojournalist Fatma Hassouna, the subject of the documentary "Put Your Soul on Your Hand" and "Walk," which will be screened at the festival, on April 16. Hassouna, 25, died in an Israeli army attack that also claimed the lives of 10 of her relatives, including her pregnant sister. It also highlights the case of Palestinian filmmaker Hamdan Ballal, co-director of the documentary "No Other Land, " which won an Oscar last March . Ballal was the victim of a violent attack by Israeli settlers before being kidnapped by the Israeli army, which released him "under international pressure."

“The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ lack of support for Hamdam Ballal has sparked outrage among its own members, forcing him to publicly apologize for his inaction,” the document adds. “This passivity shames us,” emphasize the signatories, who also include actors Susan Sarandon, Jude Law, Julie Delpy, Jonathan Glazer, and Nicole Garcia, as well as directors such as David Cronenberg, Mike Leigh, and Xavier Dolan. “Why does cinema, a breeding ground for socially committed works, seem uninterested in the horror of reality, in the oppression suffered by our sisters and brothers?” the article insists, urging: “Let us reject the idea that our art form is complicit in the worst.”