A gut-wrenching film premiering at the Venice Film Festival Wednesday about a five-year-old girl killed by Israeli forces in Gaza last year gives a "voice" to Palestinian victims of the war, its director said.

"The Voice of Hind Rajab" shook audiences in its first press screenings in Venice on Wednesday, leaving some critics in tears over the dramatic portrayal of real events from January 2024.

"We see that the narrative all around world is that those dying in Gaza are collateral damage, in the media," Franco-Tunisian director Kaouther Ben Hania told reporters.

"And I think this is so dehumanising, and that's why cinema, art and every kind of expression is very important to give those people a voice and face."

Her film, a strong contender for Venice's top prize, has support from Brad Pitt and Joachin Phoenix as well as Oscar-winning directors Jonathan Glazer ("The Zone of Interest") and Mexico's Alfonso Cuaron ("Roma"). All of them are credited as executive producers.

"I'm very happy, and I never in my life thought that can be possible," Ben Hania said of her A-list Hollywood backers,........

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