Until The Sky Falls Quiet, the 2025 Australian documentary featuring powerful insider footage of life inside Gaza, will screen at Warrawong’s Gala Cinema on 21 February, with the directors urging as many people as possible to attend.

Directed by Erica Long and Jason Korr, the film follows two Western Sydney doctors - Dr Sanjay Adusumilli and Dr Siraj Siratravel - as they travel to Gaza on a medical mission, risking their safety to provide aid on the frontlines.

“It came about after we met Dr Sanjay and Dr Siraj, and Dr Siraj’s wife, Veena, when they contacted us to make a promotional video for their medical mission to Gaza,” she said.

“We filmed that first, and then right before they left, we pitched the idea of a documentary. They agreed.”

Long said she felt compelled to tell the behind-the-scenes story because she believed Australian media coverage was not fully capturing what was happening on the ground.

“I was seeing humanitarian doctors speaking at the UN about what they witnessed. I was reading opinion pieces from doctors like Dr Irfan Galaria, who described what he saw in Gaza as an annihilation and not just a war,” she said.

“It made me realise that what we were being shown was probably nowhere near the full reality.”

Because of restrictions on independent media entering Gaza, the doctors themselves filmed much of the footage. Initially, Long expected the material would only support a short film - but that changed when they returned.

“They were using phones,” she said. “And one of the aid workers they were with, who’s from the UK, turned out to be a photographer.”

Additional footage was provided by MSF and three other humanitarian workers - Dr Bushra, Dr Jamal Murai and Khaled Cheikhshir - who were working at the same hospital.

A still from the film: Sanjay in surgery. Photo: Tom Lewendon

“With six aid workers contributing raw footage, it gave us enough coverage to piece together what it was like working in Rafah and at Al-Aqsa Hospital in central Gaza,” Long said.

As the project evolved, so did its focus. What began as a behind-the-scenes account shifted toward a more human-centred narrative.

“The Gaza–Israel conflict is so polarising. Some people switch off as soon as they hear ‘Gaza–Israel’ because they think about protests and political division,” Long said.

“What we realised was that we wanted to humanise Palestinians and show that they’re not just numbers in the news. They’re human beings. We wanted people to be confronted with the question: How can you, as a human being, watch all of this and be okay with it?”

The film presents Gaza through the lens of the two doctors, immersing viewers in their emotional journey.

“You feel what they feel - their pain and their moments of hope,” she said.

The documentary does not shy away from confronting material. Long described the difficult editorial decisions involved in handling graphic footage.

A still from the film: An injured child in Al Aqsa Hospital. Photo: Tom Lewendon

“There were images of deceased people. On one hand, you don’t want to show something graphic. On the other, if no one shows it, will people understand the brutality?” she said.

“Jason, my partner and co-director, is a doctor. Some photos were so graphic that even he couldn’t make out what was happening because the injuries were so severe.”

Ultimately, the filmmakers chose to focus on individual stories that had deeply impacted the doctors, including young patients treated in the hospital.

Despite the devastation, the film also highlights resilience.

“There’s a scene where kids are running around playing with a blown-up disposable hospital glove as if it’s a balloon,” Long said.

“You see little Zico, who’s 10, trying to help at the hospital. And medical students stepping up to assist wherever they can. These people are living in hell on Earth and yet still they try to find joy and help one another.”

In one moving sequence, Dr Siraj asks children at the hospital to draw pictures. Their drawings reveal both grief and hope.

“There was such a range - one child tried to draw Dr Siraj, another drew their father who had passed away. You realise how much they’ve already experienced,” Long said.

“But there were also rainbows and doves. At the end of the day, they just want it to stop. They want to live in dignity.”

The poster for the film. Photo: Avenoir Productions

As the film prepares to screen locally, Long encourages audiences to approach it with an open mind.

“Put politics aside and come for the human story,” she said. “It’s about two Australian doctors on a medical mission. Whatever your political views, you can connect with their journey.”

Until The Sky Falls Quiet will screen at Gala Cinema on 21 February, followed by a Q&A with director Erica Long and Dr Sanjay Adusumilli. Tickets are available via the cinema’s website and you can watch the trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9wzfV6EY8I.