“We write as filmmakers who have a professional relationship to Mubi to express our serious concern regarding Mubi’s decision to accept $100 million in funding from Sequoia Capital, a private equity firm that, since late 2023 has chosen to double down on investing in Israeli military technology companies with the goal of profiting from the Gazan genocide. In 2024, Sequoia heavily invested in Kela, a military tech startup founded by a former senior manager of Palantir Israel and multiple Israeli military intelligence veterans, as well as military drone manufacturer Neros, and the unmanned aerial vehicle manufacture [sic], Mach Industries,” the letter (via Variety) reads. “Mubi’s financial growth as a company is now explicitly tied to the genocide in Gaza, which implicates all of us that work with Mubi. We too believe that cinema can be powerful. And we know that we can’t always control how audiences will respond to our work, and whether or not it will move and inspire them. But we can control how our work reflects our values and commitments—ones that are wholly ignored when our work is brought into alliance with a genocide-profiteering private equity firm.”
The letter writers request that Mubi “heed the call made by Film Workers for Palestine” and take action. Per Variety, that includes three steps: “Publicly condemn Sequoia Capital for ‘genocide profiteering,'” “Remove Sequoia Partner Andrew Reed from Mubi’s board of directors,” and “Instate an ethical policy for all future Mubi investments, and respect programming and partnerships guidelines set by the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI).”
Mubi faces increasing pressure over the issue, with several international organizations pulling out of Mubi Fest, groups like Girls in Film ending longstanding partnership with the company, and recently, the Valdivia Film Festival in Chile saying it won’t screen any film distributed by Mubi. In June, Mubi released a statement saying its partnership with Sequoia Capital was meant “to accelerate our mission of delivering bold and visionary films to global audiences.” The company posted to social media, “Over the last several days, some members of our community have commented on the decision to work with Sequoia given their investment in Israeli companies and the personal opinions expressed by one of their partners. The beliefs of individual investors do not reflect the views of MUBI. We take the feedback from our community very seriously, and are steadfast in remaining an independent founder-led company.” Mubi has not commented on the open letter published on Wednesday.
“Gaza is enduring mass civilian killings, including of journalists, artists, and film workers, alongside the widespread destruction of Palestinian cultural sites and heritage. We don’t believe an arthouse film platform can meaningfully support a global community of cinephiles while also partnering with a company invested in murdering Palestinian artists and filmmakers,” the letter reads. “We approach our work with care for the people and communities they represent, and the audiences who will watch it, because as artists we are accountable to more than the bottom line. Yet Mubi’s decision to partner with Sequoia demonstrates a total lack of accountability to the artists and communities who have helped the company flourish. We believe that it is our ethical duty to do no harm. We expect our partners, at a minimum, to refuse to be complicit in the horrific violence being waged against Palestinians.”
