The Marrakech Intl. Film Festival has revealed the lineup for its 22nd edition, which runs Nov. 28 to Dec. 6. A total of 82 films from 31 countries have been selected for the festival.
Nine of these films unspool as world or international premieres, nine have received the support of the Atlas Workshops, the festival’s industry and talent development platform, and 14 represent their countries in the race for the Academy Awards.
The Official Competition showcases new talent in world cinema with 14 first and second feature films that compete for the Étoile d’Or, awarded by a jury headed by filmmaker Bong Joon-ho.
Moroccan filmmaker Meryem Benm’Barek, whose “Sofia” won the screenplay prize in 2018 in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard section, delivers the world premiere of “Behind the Palm Trees,” a tense psychological thriller that examines the class relations and social domination inherited from the colonial past.
Australian photographer James J. Robinson presents the international premiere of “First Light,” a moral drama in which a Filipino nun questions her faith in the face of corruption. He won best Australian director at Melbourne Film Festival when the film had its world premiere.
Several filmmakers revisit decisive political moments in their countries through semi-autobiographical narrative: Shih-Han Tsao’s “Before the Bright Day” evokes the anxiety of a generation faced with the threat of war in Taiwan in 1996; Akinola Davies Jr.’s “My Father’s Shadow” follows a father and his sons in Nigeria during the 1993 electoral crisis; and Zamo Mkhwanazi’s “Laundry” recounts the dreams of a young South African man during Apartheid.
Two debut feature films — Siyou Tan’s “Amoeba” and Imran Perretta’s “Ish” — explore teenage friendship as it faces the challenge of political awakening, respectively in Singapore and suburban London. Three films portray women who demonstrate resistance and reinvent their destinies: Erige Sehiri’s “Promised Sky,” a tale of female solidarity in the face of racism in Tunisia; Ondřej Provazník’s “Broken Voices,” a chilling drama about the abuse of authority; and Morad Mostafa’s “Aisha Can’t Fly Away,” a fantasy thriller that follow a Sudanese woman’s quest for freedom in Cairo.
In the deeply moving documentaries “Memory” and “My Father and Qaddafi,” directors Vladlena Sandu and Jihane K., respectively, revisit their childhoods in Chechnya and Libya, weaving powerful narratives of families at the crossroads of personal memory and collective history.
Finally, “Straight Circle,” a satire about the absurdity of conflict, reveals director Oscar Hudson’s visual inventiveness, while “Forastera,” a summer tale of mourning by Lucía Aleñar Iglesias, testifies to the “vitality of new voices in contemporary cinema as it combines formal audacity with universal emotion,” the festival said.
The Gala Screenings showcase, which include some of the world’s most anticipated films, opens with “Dead Man’s Wire,” Gus Van Sant’s satire on the media and capitalism. It also includes Maryam Touzani’s “Calle Málaga,” a tender portrait of a woman from the Spanish community in Tangier, starring Carmen Maura.
As part of the Tributes program, Guillermo del Toro unveils his gothic and romantic vision of “Frankenstein” with Jacob Elordi, while Jodie Foster presents “A Private Life,” Rebecca Zlotowski’s crime comedy.
Two world premieres bring together the biggest stars of Egyptian and Tunisian cinema: “El Sett,” Marwan Hamed’s biopic about the diva Oum Kalthoum, played by Mona Zaki; and “Sophia,” a chilling thriller directed by and starring Dhafer L’Abidine.
A gala evening will celebrate “Hamnet” by Chloé Zhao, a moving tale of family love, in which the loss of a child inspires the play “Hamlet.” Filmmaker Neeraj Ghaywan comes to Marrakech with “Homebound,” a touching melodrama about the friendship and dreams of two young Indians played by rising Bollywood stars Ishaan Khatter and Vishal Jethwa.
The festival closes with Annemarie Jacir’s “Palestine 36,” which brings together some of the greatest actors in the Arab world in a historical drama that recounts a decisive moment for the Palestinian people.
The Horizons section presents 19 contemporary films that “paint a panorama of world cinema,” the festival said. It welcomes new work from major filmmakers Claire Denis, Valérie Donzelli, Ildikó Enyedi, Jim Jarmusch, Richard Linklater, Jafar Panahi, Park Chan-wook and Kelly Reichardt, and also highlights a new generation of auteurs: Ali Asgari (“Divine Comedy”), Simón Mesa Soto (“A Poet”), Teona Strugar Mitevska (“Mother”) and Mélisa Godet (“A Place for Her”).
The Horizons selection also celebrates the vitality of Arab cinema, with several films that have made their mark at major festivals: Cherien Dabis’s “What’s Left of Us” won acclaim at the Sundance Film Festival; both Hasan Hadi’s “The President’s Cake” and Arab and Tarzan Nasser’s “Once Upon a Time in Gaza” won awards at Cannes; and Cyril Aris’s “A Sad and Beautiful World” and Kaouther Ben Hania’s “The Voice of Hind Rajab” saw success at Venice. Two documentaries complete the selection: Raoul Peck’s “Orwell: 2+2=5” and Hélène Harder’s “Fatna, a Woman Named Rachid,” presented as a world premiere.
The 11th Continent program consists of six fiction and nine documentary films. The section presents new films by critically acclaimed filmmakers, including Massoud Bakhshi, Oliver Laxe, Lucrecia Martel and Hlynur Pálmason, while celebrating daring auteurs like Kamal Aljafari, Lana Daher, Damien Hauser, Dima El-Hor, Gianluca Matarrese, Namir Abdel Messeeh, Lemohang Mosese and Tamara Stepanyan. The program also includes restored versions of three classics of Arab cinema, including “The Mirage” by Ahmed Bouanani (1980), which has been restored especially for this occasion.
The Moroccan Panorama delivers seven fiction and documentary films by Moroccan filmmakers, of which two are world and international premieres: “Five Eyes” by Karim Debbagh and “Porte Bagage” by Abdelkarim El-Fassi. Moroccan cinema is further highlighted this year with a total of 15 films presented across the various sections of the festival.
The Young Audiences and Families section offers a program aimed at children and youth aged 4 to 18, as well as families, with 13 screenings that “celebrate curiosity and an awakening to the art of cinema.”
Rounding up this year’s films are a selection of films by and featuring Jodie Foster, Guillermo del Toro, Raouya and Hussein Fahmi, personalities to whom the festival offers Tributes this year, are presented at the Palais des Congrès, the Cinéma le Colisée, and the Musée Yves Saint-Laurent.
OFFICIAL COMPETITION
AISHA CAN’T FLY AWAY by Morad Mostafa
Egypt, France, Germany, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Sudan
with Buliana Simon, Ziad Zaza, Mamdouh Saleh, Emad Ghoniem, Maya Mohamed, Mohamed Abd Elhady
Supported by the Atlas Workshops
AMOEBA by Siyou Tan
Singapore, Netherlands, France, Spain, South Korea
with Ranice Tay, Nicole Lee, Lim Shi-An, Genevieve Tan, Jack Kao, Ng Mun Poh
BEFORE THE BRIGHT DAY (NAN FANG SHI GUANG) by Shih-Han Tsao
Taiwan
with Hsuan-Li Chen, Kang-Ren Wu, Shu-Mei Sun, R.D. Huang, Yu-Chieh Cheng
BEHIND THE PALM TREES (DERRIÈRE LES PALMIERS) by Meryem Benm’Barek
France, Morocco, Belgium, United Kingdom
with Sara Giraudeau, Driss Ramdi, Nadia Kounda, Carole Bouquet, Olivier Rabourdin, Soumaya Akaaboune
Supported by the Atlas Workshops
World Premiere
BROKEN VOICES (SBORMISTR) by Ondřej Provazník
Czech Republic, Slovakia
with Kateřina Falbrová, Juraj Loj, Maya Kintera, Zuzana Šulajová, Marek Cisovský, Ivana Wojtylová
FIRST LIGHT by James J. Robinson
Philippines, Australia
with Ruby Ruiz, Maricel Soriano
International Premiere
FORASTERA by Lucía Aleñar Iglesias
Spain, Sweden, Italy
with Zoe Stein, Lluis Homar, Núria Prims, Nonni Ardal, Martina García
ISH by Imran Perretta
United Kingdom
with Farhan Hasnat, Yahya Kitana, Avin Shah, Sudha Bhuchar, Joy Crookes, Arman Mohammed
LAUNDRY (UHLANJULULO) by Zamo Mkhwanazi
Switzerland, South Africa
with Ntobeko Sishi, Tracy September, Zekhethelo Zondi, Siyabonga Shibe, Bukamina Cebekhulu
Supported by the Atlas Workshops
MEMORY by Vladlena Sandu
France, Netherlands
with Amina Taisumova, Selima Agamirzaeva, Vladlena Sandu
MY FATHER AND QADDAFI by Jihan K
United States, Libya – Documentary
MY FATHER’S SHADOW by Akinola Davies Jr.
United Kingdom, Nigeria
with Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù, Chibuike Marvellous Egbo, Godwin Egbo
PROMISED SKY (PROMIS LE CIEL) by Erige Sehiri
France, Tunisia, Qatar
with Aïssa Maïga, Laetitia Ky, Debora Lobe Nanay, Mohamed Grayaa, Foued Zaazaa, Estelle Kenza Dogbon, Touré Blamassi
Supported by the Atlas Workshops
STRAIGHT CIRCLE by Oscar Hudson
United Kingdom
with Luke Tittensor, Elliot Tittensor, Neil Maskell
GALA
Opening film
DEAD MAN’S WIRE by Gus Van Sant
United States
with Bill Skarsgård, Dacre Montgomery, Al Pacino, Colman Domingo, Myha’la, Cary Elwes, Kelly Lynch
CALLE MÁLAGA (RUE MÁLAGA) by Maryam Touzani
Morocco, France, Spain, Germany, Belgium
with Carmen Maura, Ahmed Boulane, Marta Etura
FRANKENSTEIN by Guillermo del Toro
United States
with Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi, Christoph Waltz, Mia Goth, Felix Kammerer
HAMNET by Chloé Zhao
United Kingdom
with Jessie Buckley, Paul Mescal, Joe Alwyn, Emily Watson, Zac Wishart, James Lintern
HOMEBOUND by Neeraj Ghaywan
India
with Ishaan Khatter, Vishal Jethwa, Janhvi Kapoor
A PRIVATE LIFE (VIE PRIVÉE) by Rebecca Zlotowski
France
with Jodie Foster, Daniel Auteuil, Virginie Efira, Mathieu Amalric, Vincent Lacoste
EL SETT by Marwan Hamed
Egypt
with Mona Zaki, Sayed Ragab, Ahmed Khaled Saleh, Mohamed Farag, Karim AbdelAziz, Ahmed Helmy
Supported by the Atlas Workshops
World Premiere
SOPHIA by Dhafer L’Abidine
Tunisia, United Kingdom
with Jessica Brown Findlay, Dhafer L’Abidine, Jonathan Hyde, Kais Setti, Hiba Abouk, Maya Celine Gharbi
World Premiere
Closing film
PALESTINE 36 by Annemarie Jacir
Palestine, United Kingdom, France, Denmark, Norway, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Jordan
with Hiam Abbass, Kamel Al Basha, Yasmine Al Massri, Jalal Altawil, Robert Aramayo, Saleh Bakri, Dhafer L’Abidine, Jeremy Irons
HORIZONS
ALL THAT IS LEFT OF YOU (ALLLY BAQI MINK) by Cherien Dabis
Germany, Cyprus
with Saleh Bakri, Cherien Dabis, Adam Bakri, Maria Zreik, Mohammad Bakri, Mohammad Abd Elrahman
Supported by the Atlas Workshops
AT WORK (À PIED D’OEUVRE) by Valérie Donzelli
France
with Bastien Bouillon, André Marcon, Virginie Ledoyen
DIVINE COMEDY (KOMEDIE ELAHI) by Ali Asgari
Iran, Turkey, Italy, France, Germany
with Bahram Ark, Sadaf Asgari, Bahman Ark, Faezeh Rad, Mohammad Soori, Milad Ashkali
FATHER MOTHER SISTER BROTHER by Jim Jarmusch
United States, Ireland, France
with Tom Waits, Adam Driver, Mayim Bialik, Charlotte Rampling, Cate Blanchett, Vicky Krieps
FATNA, A WOMAN NAMED RACHID (FATNA, UNE FEMME NOMMÉE RACHID) by Hélène Harder
Morocco, France, Belgium
Documentary
with Fatna El Bouih
World Premiere
THE FENCE (LE CRI DES GARDES) by Claire Denis
France
with Isaach De Bankolé, Matt Dillon, Mia Mackenna-Bruce, Tom Blyth, Brian Begnan, Moussa Thiam
IT WAS JUST AN ACCIDENT (UN SIMPLE ACCIDENT) by Jafar Panahi
Iran, France, Luxembourg
with Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi
THE MASTERMIND by Kelly Reichardt
United States
with Josh O’Connor, Alana Haim, John Magaro , Gaby Hoffmann, Eli Gelb
MOTHER by Teona Strugar Mitevska
Belgium, North Macedonia, Sweden, Denmark, Bosnia & Herzegovina
with Noomi Rapace, Sylvia Hoeks, Nikola Ristanovski
NOUVELLE VAGUE by Richard Linklater
France
with Guillaume Marbeck, Zoey Deutch, Aubry Dullin, Adrien Rouyard, Antoine Besson, Jodie Ruth-Forest
NO OTHER CHOICE (EOJJEOL SUGA EOPDA) by Park Chan-wook
South Korea
with Lee Byung-hun, Son Ye-jin, Park Hee-soon, Lee Sung-min, Yeom Hye-ran, Cha Seung-won
ONCE UPON A TIME IN GAZA by Arab Nasser & Tarzan Nasser
France, Palestine, Germany, Portugal, Qatar, Jordan
with Nader Abd Alhay, Ramzi Maqdisi, Majd Eid, Issaq Elias
Supported by the Atlas Workshops
ORWELL: 2+2=5 by Raoul Peck
United States, France – Documentary
with Damian Lewis
A PLACE FOR HER (LA MAISON DES FEMMES) by Mélisa Godet
France
with Karin Viard, Laetitia Dosch, Oulaya Amamra, Eye Haïdara, Pierre Deladonchamps, Juliette Armanet
A POET (UN POETA) by Simón Mesa Soto
Colombia, Germany, Sweden
with Ubeimar Rios, Rebeca Andrade, Guillermo Cardona, Allison Correa, Margarita Soto, Humberto Restrepo
THE PRESIDENT’S CAKE (MAMLAKET AL-QASAB) by Hasan Hadi
Iraq, United States, Qatar
with Baneen Ahmed Nayyef, Sajad Mohamad Qasem, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Rahim AlHaj
A SAD AND BEAUTIFUL WORLD (NOUJOUM AL AMAL WAL ALAM) by Cyril Aris
Lebanon, United States, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Qatar
with Mounia Akl, Hasan Akil, Julia Kassar, Camille Salameh, Tino Karam, Nadyn Chalhoub
Supported by the Atlas Workshops
SILENT FRIEND (STILLE FREUNDIN) by Ildikó Enyedi
Germany, Hungary, France
with Tony Leung, Chiu-Wai, Luna Wedler, Enzo Brumm, Sylvester Groth, Martin Wuttke, Johannes Hegemann, Léa Seydoux
THE VOICE OF HIND RAJAB (LA VOIX DE HIND RAJAB) by Kaouther Ben Hania
Tunisia, France
with Saja Kilani, Motaz Malhees, Clara Khoury, Amer Hlehel
11th CONTINENT
ALL MY SISTERS (TOUTES MES SOEURS/3 KHÂHAR) by Massoud Bakhshi
Austria, France, Germany
Documentary
with Zahra, Mahya, Maleka
ANCESTRAL VISIONS OF THE FUTURE by Lemohang Mosese
France, Lesotho, Germany, Qatar, Saudi Arabia
Documentary
AND THE FISH FLY ABOVE OUR HEADS (WAL ASMAK TATIR FAWKA ROU’OUSSINA) by Dima El-Horr
France, Lebanon, Saoudi Arabia
Documentary
with Reda Sheib, Adel Slim, Qassem Abani
DO YOU LOVE ME by Lana Daher
France, Lebanon, Germany, Qatar
Documentary
I WANT HER DEAD (A TRUE STORY ABOUT ALMOST MURDERING MY FAMILY) (IL QUIETO VIVERE) by Gianluca Matarrese
Italy, Switzerland
Documentary
LANDMARKS (NUESTRA TIERRA) by Lucrecia Martel
Argentina, United States, Mexico, France, Netherlands, Denmark
Documentary
LIFE AFTER SIHAM (LA VIE APRÈS SIHAM) by Namir Abdel Messeeh
Egypt, France
Documentary
with Siham Abdel Messeeh, Waguih Abdel Messeeh, Nermine Abdel Messeeh, Namir Abdel Messeeh
Supported by the Atlas Workshops
THE LOVE THAT REMAINS (ÁSTIN SEM EFTIR ER) by Hlynur Pálmason
Iceland, Denmark, Sweden, France
with Saga Garðarsdóttir, Sverrir Guðnason, Ída Mekkín Hlynsdóttir, Grímur Hlynsson, Þorgils Hlynsson
MEMORY OF PRINCESS MUMBI by Damien Hauser
Switzerland, Kenya, Saudi Arabia
Mockumentary
with Shandra Apondi, Ibrahim Joseph, Samson Waithaka
THE MIRAGE (MIRAGE / AS-SARAB) by Ahmed Bouanani
Morocco – 1980 – Restored version
with Mohamed Habachi, Mohamed Saïd Afifi, Fatima Regragui, Mohamed Razine, Mostafa Mounir
World Premiere
THE MUMMY – THE NIGHT OF COUNTING THE YEARS (AL-MOMIA) by Shadi Abdel Salam
Egypt – 1969 – Restored version
with Ahmed Marei, Ahmed Hegazi, Zouzou Hamdi El Hakim, Nadia Lutfi
MY ARMENIAN PHANTOMS (MES FANTÔMES ARMÉNIENS) by Tamara Stepanyan
France, Armenia, Qatar
Documentary
SAÏD EFFENDI (SAEED EFFENDI) by Kameran Hosni
Iraq – 1956 – Restored version
with Youssef Al-Ani, Zainab Hosni, Abdel-Wahid Taha, Jaafar Al-Saadi
SIRÂT by Oliver Laxe
Spain, France
with Sergi López, Bruno Núñez Arjona, Richard Bellamy, Stefania Gadda, Joshua Liam Henderson, Tonin Janvier, Jade Oukid
WITH HASAN IN GAZA by Kamal Aljafari
Palestine, Germany, France, Qatar
Documentary
MOROCCAN PANORAMA
THE ANTS (LES FOURMIS) by Yassine Fennane
Morocco
with Marame Ndiye, Nadia Kounda, Hicham Slaoui, Majdouline Drissi, Mansour Badri
AUTISTO by Jérôme Cohen-Olivar
Morocco
with Loubna Abidar, Sam Kanater, Youssef Bougerra, Sandia Aboutajedyne
BAD WEATHER (MAUVAIS TEMPS) by Madane El Ghazouani
Morocco
with Abdenbi Benniwi, Hajar Graigaa, Mohammed Maroua, Abdelghani Sennak, Noufissa Doukkali
FIVE EYES (CINQ REGARDS) by Karim Debbagh
Morocco, France
Documentary
with Paul Bowles, Mohamed Choukri, Mohammed Temsamany, Mohammed Mrabet, Abdelouahid Boulaich, Karim Debbagh
World Premiere
MIRA by Nour-Eddine Lakhmari
Morocco, Saudi Arabia
with Safae Khatami, Zaynab Lalj, Fatima Atif, Omar Lotfi, Moussa Sylla, Ismail Fallahi
PORTE BAGAGE by Abdelkarim El-Fassi
Netherlands
with Ahlaam Teghadouini, Mahjoub Benmoussa, Mohammed Chaara
International Premiere
THOSE WHO WATCH OVER (CEUX QUI VEILLENT) by Karima Saïdi
Belgium
Documentary
CINEMA FOR YOUNG AUDIENCES & FAMILIES
ARCO by Ugo Bienvenu
France, United States
with Oscar Tresanini, Margot Ringard Oldra, Alma Jodorowsky, Swann Arlaud, Vincent Macaigne, Louis Garrel
THE BARONESSES (LES BARONNES) by Nabil Ben Yadir & Mokhtaria Badaoui
Belgium, Luxembourg, France
with Saadia Bentaieb, Rachida Bouganhem, Halima Amrani, Rachida Riahi, Sanya Sridi
GUILLERMO DEL TORO’S PINOCCHIO by Guillermo del Toro, Mark Gustafson
United States
with (French voices) Gaël Raës, Pierre Santini, Jacques Verzier, Michel Lerousseau, Thierry Hancisse, Anne Alvaro
THE SONGBIRDS’ SECRET (LE SECRET DES MÉSANGES) by Antoine Lanciaux
France, Belgium
with Lucie Leontadis, Anton Souverbie-Giorgis, Marina Le Guennec, Yannick Jaulin
TUMMY TOM AND THE LOST TEDDY BEAR (TOM LE CHAT: À LA RECHERCHE DU DOUDOU PERDU/DIKKIE DIK EN DE VERDWENEN KNUFFEL) by Joost van den Bosch & Erik Verkerk
Netherlands, Belgium
with (French voices) Martin Spinhayer
