Under the High Patronage of King Mohammed VI, the Marrakech International Film Festival will present, from November 11 to 19, 2022, a wide selection of world cinemas with 76 films from 33 countries divided into several sections namely the Official Competition, the Gala Screenings, the Special Screenings, the 11th Continent, the Panorama of Moroccan Cinema, the Young Audience screenings, the screenings at Jemaa El Fna and the films programmed as part of the tributes.
True to the positioning of the Festival, the Official Competition will present first and second feature films in order to reveal and promote new talents in world cinema, the organizers said in a press release.
Among the 14 films selected, 10 are first feature films and 6 are signed by female directors. It’s an eclectic selection from 14 different countries, including 2 from Latin America (Brazil and Mexico), 3 from Europe (France, Portugal and Switzerland), 4 from the MENA region and its diaspora (Morocco, Sweden/Somalia , Syria, Tunisia), as well as Australia, Canada, Iran, Indonesia and Turkey.
Exploring several cinematographic genres, from fantasy to film noir, including period film, social drama, thriller or melodrama, the films in the running for the Etoile d’or address subjects that echo the concerns of young people. generations around the world: the construction of identity and the need to have role models, the place of women in our contemporary societies, but also the questions of transmission whether it is a question of tradition, political heritage or quite simply ‘love.
Opening this 19th edition, festival-goers will be able to discover Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, the new wonder of Oscar-winning filmmaker Guillermo del Toro, co-directed with Mark Gustafson. This stop motion musical animated film reinvents the adventures of the famous wooden puppet who dreamed of becoming a real little boy.
The Gala Sessions will present the premieres of international films by respected filmmakers such as James Gray (Armageddon Time), Neil Jordan (Marlowe), Tarik Saleh (Boy From Heaven) or Paul Schrader (Master Gardener); as well as films that have made a splash on the international scene, such as the Palestinian comedy-drama Mediterranean Fever, the thrilling thriller La Syndicalist starring Isabelle Huppert; as well as the British-Egyptian film The Swimmers, which depicts the true story of two swimming sisters who fled Syria to compete in the 2016 Olympics.
The Special Screenings section will present 15 contemporary films, notably from Iceland, India or South Korea, signed by filmmakers acclaimed by critics or by the biggest international festivals, including Alice Diop, Joanna Hogg, Marie Kreutzer, Jafar Panahi, as well as Fatih Akin and Philippe Faucon, who both shot their films in Morocco.
The 11th Continent section will present audacious and innovative films that shake up cinematic representations. This program composed of 12 fictions, documentaries and archival films opens a dialogue between contemporary world cinema (Paraguay, Brazil, Lebanon, Spain, Rwanda…) and two classic works shown in restored copy, which have been at the forefront. custody of Arab and African cinemas.
The Panorama of Moroccan Cinema will present a selection of 5 recent fictions and documentaries from national production and will open with the latest fiction by filmmaker Faouzi Bensaïdi, Days of Summer, screened as a world premiere. Moroccan cinema will be strongly present during this edition with a total of 15 films in the different sections of the festival.
In order to raise the awareness of tomorrow’s spectators, the Young Audience program will offer schoolchildren the opportunity to discover cinema through 9 dedicated sessions.
Jemaa El Fna Square will bring the festival to life in the heart of the city of Marrakech through a program of popular films presented by personalities including Anurag Kashyap who will present his latest film Almost Love as a world premiere.
Finally, some films by international and Moroccan personalities, to whom the festival will pay tribute, will be screened at the Palais des Congrès, at the Colisée cinema and at Jemaa El Fna, thus completing this rich selection of 76 films.
Official Competition
ALMA VIVA By Cristèle Alves Meira / Portugal
Interpretation: Lua Michel, Ana Padrao, Jacqueline Corado, Duarte Pina, Catherine Salée
ASHKAL By Youssef Chebbi / Tunisia
Cast: Fatma Oussaifi, Mohamed Houcine Grayaa, Rami Harrabi, Hichem Riahi, Nabil Trabelsi, Bahri Rahali
ASTRAKHAN By David Depesseville / France
Cast: Mirko Giannini Samuel, Jehnny Beth, Bastien Bouillon
AUTOBIOGRAPHY From Makbul Mubarak / Indonesia
Cast: Kevin Ardilova, Arswendy Bening Swara, Haru Sandra, Rukman Rosadi, Yusuf Mahardika
THE CAFTAN BLUE (Azraq Al Qaftan) By Maryam Touzani / Morocco
Cast: Lubna Azabal, Saleh Bakri, Ayoub Missioui
FARAWAY SONG (Cañçao ao Longe) By Clarissa Campolina / Brazil
Cast: Mônica Maria, Carlos Francisco, Jhon Narvaez, Margô Assis, Matilde Biagi, Ricardo Campos
PETROL By Alena Lodkina / Australia
Interpretation: Nathalie Morris, Hannah Lynch
RED SHOES (Zapatos rojos) By Carlos Kaiser Eichelmann / Mexico
Cast: Eustacio Ascacio, Natalia Solian, Phanie Molina, Irine Herrera
RICEBOY SLEEPS By Anthony Shim / Canada
Cast: Choi Seung-yoon, Ethan Hwang, Dohyun Noel Hwang, Anthony Shim, Hunter Dillon
SAVAGE (Amina) By Ahmed Abdullahi / Sweden
Cast: Nimco Ahmed Ali, Jamilah Mohamed Kirih, Ariane Castellanos
SNOW AND THE BEAR (Kar ve Ayı) By Selcen Ergun / Turkey
Cast: Merve Dizdar, Saygın Soysal, Asiye Dinçsoy, Erkan Bektaş, Derya Pınar Ak
BLACK KNIGHT (A Tale of Shemroon) By Emad Aleebrahim Dehkordi / Iran
Cast: Iman Sayad Borhani, Payar Allahyari, Masoumeh Beygi, Behzad Dorani
THE TASTE OF APPLES IS RED (Ta’am al-tufah, ahmar) By Ehab Tarabieh / Syria
Cast: Mariam J. Khoury, Tarik Kopty, Rula Blal, Hussien Rumiah, Maisa Abd Elhadi, Suheil Haddad
LIGHTNING (Thunder) By Carmen Jaquier / Switzerland
Cast: Lilith Grasmug, Mermoz Melchior, Benjamin Python, Noah Watzlawick, Sabine Timoteo
Panorama of Moroccan Cinema
Opening of the Panorama of Moroccan Cinema:
SUMMER DAYS (Ayam Seif) by Faouzi Bensaïdi / Morocco
Cast: Mouna Fettou, Mohcine Malzi, Nezha Rahil, Nadia Kounda, Abdou Taleb, Faouzi Bensaïdi, Hasna Moumni, Mohamed Choubi, Saïd Bey, Noureddine Saadane, Abderrahim Samadi
ABDELINHO By Hicham Ayouch / Morocco
Cast: Abderahim Tamimi, Ali Suliman, Ines Monteiro, Said Bey, Zhor Simani, Abdelslam Bounouacha
GOLDFISH / GOLDFISHES (Asmak hamrae) from Abdeslam Kelai / Morocco
Cast: Jalila Talemsi, Nisrine Erradi, Farida Bouazzaoui, Amine Ennaji, Mohamed Choubi
THE POSTCARD (Fi zaouiyat omi) by Asmae El Moudir / Morocco
Documentary with: Oum Eleid, Ouardiya, Chraibi, Aicha Touda ZIYARA By Simone Bitton / Morocco Documentary