A film by True Illusions · In the Shadow of Now Visit Main Site →

Pale Stone
Is Real

A fundraising campaign for

In the Shadow of Now ↗

A 5-Part Documentary Series & Short Film by True Illusions

Intimate voices, structural truth, and shared humanity — told without compromise.

Support This Film Discover the Story

The stories that matter most are the ones the world agreed not to tell.

A witness statement

The Film

In the Shadow of Now

In the Shadow of Now is a five-part documentary series built over three years. It humanises a century of conflict by centring the people who lived it — and investigates the structural forces, from Cold War realpolitik to selective historical memory, that allowed the world to look away.

The series is carried by witnesses on the ground, journalists under fire, historians who refuse silence, and public voices who amplify what others cannot say alone. These are some of the people at its centre.

Featured Voices

Bisan Owda

Bisan Owda

Journalist & Filmmaker

Reporting from inside Gaza since October 2023

Locked In View profile →
Yuval Abraham

Yuval Abraham

Journalist & Filmmaker

Israeli journalist covering the occupation from within

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Ilan Pappé

Ilan Pappé

Historian

Author of The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine

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Francesca Albanese

Francesca Albanese

UN Special Rapporteur

Leading the international legal case for accountability

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Roger Waters

Roger Waters

Musician & Activist

Using his platform to challenge complicity

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Javier Bardem

Javier Bardem

Actor & Advocate

Oscar winner lending his voice to accountability and human rights

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Gabor Maté

Gabor Maté

Author & Physician

Holocaust survivor exploring trauma and conscience

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Explore all voices →

Produced by True Illusions

Archival documentary image — the urgency of now

March 2026

Why Now

The window is closing. This film is listening.

Independent witnesses are being silenced. Archives are disappearing. Journalists are being killed at record rates. The structural forces that allowed the world to look away for decades are now actively erasing the evidence. This is the last window to document what happened — and why.

75,000+

lives lost since October 2023

In Active Production

In the Shadow of Now ↗

Five episodes tracing the arc from early Zionism and the Balfour Declaration through the Nakba, decades of occupation, and the present war — plus a companion short film. Three years of field production, intimate interviews, and archival research across Palestine, Israel, and the diaspora.

3+ years of field production

Palestine, Israel, Europe, and the diaspora

23 voices across 3 categories

Witnesses, historians, journalists, and public advocates

5 episodes + 1 short film

From Balfour to the present war — festival circuit and streaming release

Produced by True Illusions

This isn't about sides. It's about people.

Palestinians and Israelis share these pages because this film believes in the dignity of every voice. It investigates structural causes — how political systems, historical blind spots, and global indifference created the conditions for a century of suffering. Documentation is an act of care. To witness is to refuse to look away.

No state funding. No editorial compromise. No diplomatic courtesy. This film is funded entirely by people who refuse the comfort of looking away.

Support the film ↓

1917

Balfour Declaration

Britain pledges support for a Jewish homeland in Palestine

1917
1917 1948 1967 1993 2023 2026
Full Timeline →

Scroll to travel through time ↕

Historic Palestine

A Land Divided

Scroll to trace how one territory was fragmented while the world chose not to see

Territorial Control
Full Map →

Scroll to scrub through eras ↕

0

lives lost since October 2023

Each particle represents a real person

Lives Lost Memorial
Enter Memorial →

Scroll to witness ↕

Support the Film

Every contribution funds independent truth.

Your Impact

Where the money goes

£70k

Field Production

Crew, equipment, fixers, and travel across Palestine, Israel, and Europe

£170k

Post-Production & Archives

Editing, archival footage licensing, original score, and translation across 5 episodes

£225k

Full Budget

Complete production through festival submission, streaming distribution, and international release

£7,347 raised£225,000 goal
£7,347Raised
98Donors
24Countries

The Documentary

In the Shadow of Now

The full documentary project — interactive timeline, territory map, lives lost memorial, community dispatches, and ways to get involved.

Visit intheshadowofnow.com →

Interactive Resources

Timeline, territory map, and lives lost memorial

→

The Dispatch

Production updates and community news

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Community

Join the conversation, share your story

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Full Support Page

All ways to contribute and engage

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Every voice matters. Every contribution counts.

This documentary exists because people like you refused to look away. It answers to no broadcaster, no government, no editorial board — only to the truth and the people who fund it.

Support the Film → Explore the Documentary

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Support This Film ↗
Pale Stone Is Real
In the Shadow of Now Documentary Series + short film ↗

Every life is a story

0+lives lost since October 2023
£7,347 raised of £225,000£225,000 goal

Fund the documentary the industry won't commission

Secure via Stripe · 100% funds production · Receipt provided