Palestinian children watch a movie at a pop-up open-air cinema at the beach in Gaza city on July 28, 2023, as there are no movie theatres in the blockaded Gaza Strip. Gaza residents took their seats at an open-air cinema set up on a sandy beach, part of a festival that celebrated Palestinian filmmakers and provided a respite from the summer heat. Over the summer, "Cinema of the Sea" screened some 15 films -- many of them with Palestinian actors or producers -- on the waterfront in the blockaded coastal enclave. (PHOTO / AFP)

GAZA - With car tyres, rocks and mounds of sand as seats, Palestinians of all ages have been enjoying a rare trip to the movies at a big-screen event on the Gaza beachfront.

The open-air show - with a playlist including the animated children's comedy Ferdinand - was for many viewers a first experience of a projected film since the impoverished enclave's last cinema closed more than three decades ago.

Cinema once flourished in Gaza, with Palestinians flocking to see Arab, Western and Asian films, but the movie houses were torched in the First Intifada in 1987 and then burned down again in 1996 during a wave of internal violence

Hosted by The Sea is Ours cafe, the screenings were designed to promote issues of culture and history approved by the Hamas government.

They left some in the audience longing for more.

ALSO READ: At least 125 tombs discovered at Roman-era cemetery in Gaza

"I hope one day there will be a cinema, so I can go to the cinema and eat popcorn," said 13-year-old Mohammad Zidan as other children lolled in the sand, giggling at the cartoon.

Cinema once flourished in Gaza, with Palestinians flocking to see Arab, Western and Asian films, but the movie houses were torched in the First Intifada in 1987 and then burned down again in 1996 during a wave of internal violence.

The last cinema, long abandoned, is now a haven for bats.

Palestinian children watch a movie at a pop-up open-air cinema at the beach in Gaza city on July 28, 2023, as there are no movie theatres in the blockaded Gaza Strip.  (PHOTO / AFP)

While Gazans have been able to go to movie screenings which are held from time to time at theatres and other venues, such a full bill of films, being shown over several weeks at the venue, is a rare treat.

"We can get movies on mobile phones, but this is something new and is nice," said 15-year-old Hadeel Hejji.

Ali Mhana, 35, the cafe owner and local playwright, said he had never been to a regular cinema.

READ MORE: In Gaza, a woman finds rare job niche by repairing phones

"At the sea, you don't need to look for an audience, the sea has its own. People are here all the time, including children, who get attracted by the sound and image and come to watch the movies," Mhana said.