MARRAKECH INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL UNVEILS ITS OFFICIAL SELECTION
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From November 11-19, 2022, the Marrakech International Film Festival will present a wide selection of world cinema. Seventy-six films from 33 countries are presented in several sections: the Official Competition, Gala Screenings, Special Screenings, the 11th Continent, a Moroccan Panorama, Cinema for Young Audiences, screenings on Place Jemaa El Fna and films screened as Tributes to personalities of Moroccan and world cinema.
True to the Festival's positioning, the Competition presents films by directors making their first or second feature films in order to discover and promote new talents in world cinema. Among the 14 films selected, 10 are first-time features and 6 are by women directors.
It is a wide-ranging selection from 14 countries, including two from Latin America (Brazil and Mexico), three from Europe (France, Portugal and Switzerland), four from the MEA region and its diaspora (Morocco, Sweden/Somalia, Syria, Tunisia), as well as films from Australia, Canada, Indonesia, Iran and Turkey.
Exploring cinematographic genres from fantasy to film noir, and featuring period films, social dramas, thrillers and melodramas, the films competing for the Étoile d’Or address subjects that reflect the concerns of the younger generations around the world: the construction of identity, the need for role models, and the place of women in contemporary society, but also questions of passing down knowledge, whether that knowledge is of tradition, political heritage or simply love.
At the opening of this 19th edition, festival-goers will discover Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio, the latest wonder from Academy Award-winning filmmaker Guillermo del Toro, co-directed with Mark Gustafson. This stop-motion musical animated film re-imagines the adventures of the beloved wooden puppet who dreams of becoming a real boy.
This year’s Gala Screenings feature international premieres by respected filmmakers, such as James Gray’s Armageddon Time, Neil Jordan’s Marlowe, Tarik Saleh’s Boy from Heaven and Paul Schrader’s Master Gardener, as well as internationally acclaimed films such the Palestinian comedy-drama Mediterranean Fever; The Sitting Duck, a captivating thriller from France starring Isabelle Huppert; and The Swimmers, a British-Egyptian selection that tells the true story of two sisters who fled Syria to compete in the 2016 Olympic Games.
Special Screenings include 15 contemporary films from around the world—from Iceland to India to South Korea—made by critically acclaimed filmmakers and coming from presentations at the most prestigious international film festivals. Among the directors are France’s Alice Diop, the United Kingdom’s Joanna Hogg, Austria’s Marie Kreutzer and Iran’s Jafar Panahi, as well Fatih Akin of Germany and Philippe Faucon of France, both of whom shot their films in Morocco.
The 11th Continent section presents bold and innovative films that challenge cinematic representations. The programme of 12 fiction, documentary and archive films opens a cinematic dialogue between contemporary cinema coming from countries including Brazil, Lebanon, Paraguay, Rwanda and Spain, and two recently restored film classics that in their time were at the forefront of Arab and African cinema.
The Moroccan Panorama presents five of Morocco’s recent fiction and documentary films. Opening the selection is the world premiere of Summer Days, the most recent film from Faouzi Bensaïdi. Moroccan cinema has a strong presence this year, with a total of 15 films appearing in the various sections of the festival.
With the intent of increasing awareness among the audiences of tomorrow, the Cinema for Young Audiences section offers schoolchildren the opportunity to discover cinema through nine dedicated screenings.
The festival comes to life on Jemaa El Fna square, in the heart of the city of Marrakech, with a programme of popular films presented by international celebrities, among them Anurag Kashyap, who will present the world premiere of his most recent film, Almost Love.
Completing this year’s rich selection of 76 films is the festival’s Tributes programme, a presentation of films made by or starring international and Moroccan personalities, screened at the Palais des Congrès, the Cinéma du Colisée and on Jemaa El Fna square.
OFFICIAL COMPETITION
ALMA VIVA
by Cristèle Alves Meira / Portugal
Principal Cast: Lua Michel, Ana Padrão, Jacqueline Corado, Duarte Pina, Catherine Salée
ASTRAKAN
by David Depesseville / France
Principal Cast: Mirko Giannini Samuel, Jehnny Beth, Bastien Bouillon
AUTOBIOGRAPHY
by Makbul Mubarak / Indonesia
Principal Cast: Kevin Ardilova, Arswendy Bening Swara, Haru Sandra, Rukman Rosadi, Yusuf Mahardika
THE BLUE CAFTAN (Le Bleu du Caftan/Azraq al-qaftan)
by Maryam Touzani / Morocco
Principal Cast: Lubna Azabal, Saleh Bakri, Ayoub Missioui
FARAWAY SONG (Cañçao ao Longe)
by Clarissa Campolina / Brazil
Principal Cast: Mônica Maria, Carlos Francisco, Jhon Narvaez, Margô Assis, Matilde Biagi, Ricardo Campos
PETROL
by Alena Lodkina / Australia
Principal Cast: Nathalie Morris, Hannah Lynch
RED SHOES (Zapatos rojos)
by Carlos Eichelmann Kaiser / Mexico Principal Cast: Eustacio Ascacio, Natalia Solian, Phanie Molina, Irine Herrera
RICEBOY SLEEPS
by Anthony Shim / Canada
Principal Cast: Choi Seung-yoon, Ethan Hwang, Dohyun Noel Hwang, Anthony Shim, Hunter Dillon
SAVAGE (Amina)
by Ahmed Abdullahi / Sweden
Principal Cast: Nimco Ahmed Ali, Jamilah Mohamed Kirih, Ariane Castellanos
SNOW AND THE BEAR (Kar ve Ayı)
by Selcen Ergun / Turkey
Principal Cast: Merve Dizdar, Saygın Soysal, Asiye Dinçsoy, Erkan Bektaş, Derya Pınar Ak
A TALE OF SHEMROON (Chevalier noir)
by Emad Aleebrahim Dehkordi / Iran
Principal 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
Principal Cast: Mariam J. Khoury, Tarik Kopty, Rula Blal, Hussien Rumiah, Maisa Abd Elhadi, Suheil Haddad
THUNDER (Foudre)
by Carmen Jaquier / Switzerland
Principal Cast: Lilith Grasmug, Mermoz Melchior, Benjamin Python, Noah Watzlawick, Sabine Timoteo
GALA SCREENINGS
Opening Film
GUILLERMO DEL TORO'S PINOCCHIO
by Guillermo del Toro / Mexico et Mark Gustafson / USA
Principal Cast: Ewan McGregor, David Bradley, Gregory Mann, Finn Wolfhard, Cate Blanchett, John Turturro, Ron Perlman, Tim Blake Nelson, Burn Gorman, Christoph Waltz, Tilda Swinton
ARMAGEDDON TIME
by James Gray / USA
Principal Cast: Anne Hathaway, Jeremy Strong, Banks Repeta, Anthony Hopkin
BOY FROM HEAVEN (Walad min al-janna)
by Tarik Saleh / Sweden
Principal Cast: Tawfeek Barhom, Fares Fares, Mohammad Bakri, Makram J. Khoury, Mehdi Dehbi
MARLOWE
by Neil Jordan / Ireland
Principal Cast: Liam Neeson, Diane Kruger, Jessica Lange, Alan Cumming, Danny Huston
MASTER GARDENER
by Paul Schrader / USA
Principal Cast: Joel Edgerton, Sigourney Weaver, Quintessa Swindell
MEDITERRANEAN FEVER
by Maha Haj / Palestine
Principal Cast: Amer Hlehel, Ashraf Farah, Anat Hadid, Samir Elias, Cynthia Saleem, Shaden Kanboura
THE SITTING DUCK (La Syndicaliste)
by Jean-Paul Salomé / France
Principal Cast: Isabelle Huppert, Grégory Gadebois, François-Xavier Demaison, Pierre Deladonchamps, Alexandra Maria Lara, Gilles Cohen with the participation of de Marina Foïs, Yvan Attal
THE SWIMMERS
by Sally El Hosaini / Egypt/United Kingdom
Principal Cast: Mana Issa, Nathalie Issa, Matthias Schweighöfer, Ahmed Malek, James Krishna Floyd, Ali Suleiman
SPECIAL SCREENINGS
BURNING DAYS (Kurak Günler)
by Emin Alper / Turkey
Principal Cast: Selahattin Paşali, Ekin Koç, Erol Babaoğlu, Erdem Şenocak, Selin Yeninci
CORSAGE
by Marie Kreutzer / Austria
Principal Cast: Vicky Krieps, Florian Teichtmeister, Aaron Friesz, Katharina Lorenz, Jeanne Werner, Alma Hasun
THE DAMNED DON'T CRY
by Fyzal Boulifa / Morocco
Principal Cast: Abdellah El Hajjouji, Aïcha Tebbae, Antoine Reinartz
DECLARATION (Ariyippu)
by Mahesh Narayanan / India
Principal Cast: Kunchacko Boban, Divya Prabha, Lovleen Misra, Danish Husain, Kannan Arunasalam
THE ETERNAL DAUGHTER
by Joanna Hogg / United Kingdom
Principal Cast: Tilda Swinton, August Joshi,
Carly-Sophie Davies, Joseph Mydell, Crispin Buxton
GODLAND
(Vanskabte Land | Volga∂a Land)
by Hlynur Pálmason / Iceland
Principal Cast: Elliott Crosset Hove, Ingvar Sigur∂sson, Vic Carmen Sonne, Jacob Hauberg Lohmann, Ída Mekkín Hlynsdóttir
LES HARKIS
by Philippe Faucon / France
Principal Cast: Théo Cholbi, Mohamed Mouffok, Pierre Lottin, Yannick Choirat, Omar Boulakirba
MONICA
by Andrea Pallaoro / Italy
Principal Cast: Trace Lysette, Patricia Clarkson, Emily Browning, Joshua Close, Adriana Barraza
NAYOLA
by José Miguel Ribeiro / Portugal
Voices: Elisângela Rita, Vitória Soares, Feliciana Délcia Guia, Marinela Furtado, José Adelino Barcelo Carvalho
NO BEARS (Khers nist)
by Jafar Panahi / Iran
Principal Cast: Jafar Panahi, Naser Hashemi, Vahid Mobaseri, Bakhtiar Panjei, Mina Kavani
QUEENS (Reines)
by Yasmine Benkiran / Morocco
Principal Cast: Nisrin Erradi, Nisrine Benchara, Rayhan Guaran, Jalila Talemsi, Mohamed Nider Hamid
RETURN TO SEOUL (Retour à Seoul)
by Davy Chou / Cambodia
Principal Cast: Park Ji-min, Oh Kwang-rok, Guka Han, Kim Sun-young, Yoann Zimmer, Louis-Do Lencquesaing
RHINEGOLD (Rheingold)
by Fatih Akin / Germany
Principal Cast: Emilio Sakraya, Kardo Razzazi, Mona Pirzad, Arman Kashani, Hüseyin Top, Sogol Faghani
SAINT OMER (Saint-Omer)
by Alice Diop / France
Principal Cast: Kayije Kagame, Guslagie Malanda, Valérie Dréville, Aurélia Petit, Robert Cantarella
UNDER THE FIG TREES (Sous les figues)
by Erige Sehiri / Tunisia
Principal Cast: Fide Fdhili, Feten Fdhili, Ameni Fdhili, Samar Sifi, Leila Ouhebi
THE 11TH CONTINENT
BEIRUT AL-LIKA (Beirut, the Encounter)
by Borhane Alaouié / Lebanon
Principal Cast: Haitham El Amine, Nadine Acoury, Renée Deek, Refaat Haidar, Hussam Sabbah, Najwa Haidar, Rafic Najem (1981)
DRY GROUND BURNING (Mato seco em chamas)
by Joana Pimenta / Portugal
and Adirley Queiros / Brazil
Principal Cast: Joana Darc Furtado, Léa Alves Da Silva, Andreia Vieira, Débora Alencar, Gleide Firmino, Mara Alves
EAMI
by Paz Encina / Paraguay
Principal Cast: Anel Picanerai, Curia Chiquejno Etacoro, Ducubaide Chiquenoi, Basui Picanerai Etacore, Lucas Etacori
FATHER'S DAY
by Kivu Ruhorahoza / Rwanda
Principal Cast: Mediatrice Kayitesi, Aline Amike, Yves Kijyana, Cedric Gisubizo
FRAGMENTS FROM HEAVEN
by Adnane Baraka / Morocco
Documentary
With: Mohamed Oubakha, Abderrahman Ibhi, Lahcen Oubakha, Youssef Oubakha
IN FIELDS OF WORDS: CONVERSATIONS WITH SAMAR YAZBEK (As-sahel al-mumtani)
by Rania Stephan / Lebanon
Documentary
With: Samar Yazbek
MARINER OF THE MOUNTAINS (Marinheiro das Montanhas)
by Karim Aïnouz / Brazil
MUNA MOTO (The Child of Another)
by Jean-Pierre Dikongué-Pipa / Cameroon Principal Cast: David Endéné, Arlette Din Bell, Philippe Abia, Gisèle Dikongué-Pipa, Jeanne Mvondo (1975)
PACIFICTION
by Albert Serra / Spain
Principal Cast: Benoît Magimel, Pahoa Mahagafanau, Marc Susini, Matahi Pambrun, Alexandre Melo
REWIND & PLAY
by Alain Gomis / Senegal
Documentary
MOROCCAN PANORAMA
Opening Film
SUMMER DAYS (Jours d'été)
by Faouzi Bensaïdi / Morocco
Principal 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
Principal Cast: Abderahim Tamimi, Ali Suliman, Ines Monteiro, Saïd Bey, Zhor Simani, Abdelslam Bounouacha
GOLDFISHES (Asmak hamrae)
by Abdeslam Kelai / Morocco
Principal 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
CINEMA FOR YOUNG AUDIENCES
THE BLACK PHARAOH, THE SAVAGE AND THE PRINCESS (Le Pharaon, le sauvage et la princesse)
by Michel Ocelot / France
Voices: Aïssa Maïga, Oscar Lesage, Claire de la Rüe du Can, Didier Sandre, Serge Bagdassarian
DOUNIA AND THE PRINCESS OF ALEPPO (Dounia et la princesse d’Alep)
by Marya Zarif & André Kadi / Canada
Voices: Rachaf Ataya, Elsa Mardorissian, Manuel Tadros, Raïa Haidar, Marya Zarif
HAWA
by Maïmouna Doucouré / France
Principal Cast: Sania Halifa, Oummou Sangaré, Yseult, Jérôme Pouly, Thomas Pesquet, Titouan Gerbier
YUKU AND THE FLOWER OF THE HIMALAYAS (Yuku et la fleur l’Himalaya)
by Arnaud Demuynck / Belgium,
and Rémi Durin / France
Voices: Lily Demuynck-Deydier, Agnès Jaoui, Arno, Tom November, Alice on the Roof, Igor Van Dessel
OUTDOOR SCREENINGS
ON JEMAA EL FNA SQUARE
30 MILLION (30 Melyoun)
by Rabii Chajid / Morocco
Principal Cast: Driss & Mehdi, Yassar, Karima Gouit, Ibtissam Tiskat, Faty Jamali, Rabii El Kati, Rafik Boubker, Nabil Atif.
AD ASTRA
by James Gray / USA
Principal Cast: Brad Pitt, Tommy Lee Jones, Ruth Negga, Liv Tyler, Donald Sutherland
ALMOST LOVE (Almost Pyaar with DJ Mohabbat)
by Anurag Kashyap / India
Principal Cast: Alaya F., Karan Mehta
DADDY OR MOMMY (Papa ou maman)
by Martin Bourboulon / France
Principal Cast: Marina Foïs, Laurent Lafitte
GULLY BOY
by Zoya Akhtar / India
Principal Cast: Ranveer Singh Alia Bhatt, Siddhant Chaturvedi
AL IKHWANE
by Mohamed Amine El Ahmar / Morocco
Principal Cast: Abdelali Lahmar / Taliss, Karima Oulhouss, Saïd Halim, Wadie Erraji, Ayoub Idri, Maya, Fadila Benmoussa, Rachid Rafik, Mohamed Bassou, Youssef Azilal, Abdellatif Khamouli, Raouia, Fatima Bouchene
MINIONS : THE RISE OF GRU
by Kyle Balda, Brad Ableson & Jonathan del Val / USA
Principal Cast: Gad Elmaleh, Gérard Darmon, Claudia Tagbo
The 19th Marrakech International Film Festival will be held
