MARRAKECH - Since film-loving King Mohamed VI ascended to the throne in 1999, cinema has received significant support in Morocco. The 15th annual Marrakech Film Festival which started on Friday, has served as an important showcase for world cinema and also for Morocco’s liberal outlook.
Over recent years, Morocco has been consistently chosen to lens blockbuster productions – recent examples including “Spectre” and “Mission Impossible 6 – Rogue Nation” – because film producers are attracted by the kingdom’s spectacular locations, overall security and film-friendly environment.
During this same period, catalyzed by the presence of major foreign shoots and a major international film festival, Moroccan cinema has evolved into one of the Arab World’s most dynamic film industries, vying with the traditional film powerhouse of Egypt, Variety.com reports.
At home, Moroccan films have consistently represented around half of the country’s Top Ten films at the box-office and 2015 has been no exception. Moroccan helmers such as Nabil Ayouch, Noureddine Lakhmari, Hicham Lasri, Faouzi Bensaidi, Leila Kilani and Narjiss Nejjar, have also become regulars on the international festival circuit.
Sarim Fassi Fihri, the head of the Moroccan Cinema Center (CCM), would like to see further progress of the domestic industry with increasing presence in A-list festivals, and cites Romania – which won the Palme d’Or in Cannes in 2007 – as an inspiration. The Dubai-based international VOD platform, Icflix, set up operations in Morocco in 2013 and has inked co-production deals with several Moroccan helmers, including Lakhmari, with an eye on promoting Moroccan films throughout the Arab world.
However, to achieve these goals Moroccan films need to increase their production values, develop tighter scripts and embrace bolder approaches. The biggest local hit in 2014 – “Behind Closed Doors” by Mohammed Ahed Bensouda – focused on the issue of sexual harassment of women in the workplace and led to a national movement to change Moroccan laws.
Bensouda believes that it’s possible to focus on such issues without creating direct confrontation. “Morocco’s neo-realist directors focus on frontal shock and provocation,” he suggests. “I prefer to show modern realities but in such a way that can attract a family audience. It’s all a question of choice of different styles.”
Five Moroccan films rank in this year’s Top Ten, and explore important social issues, in particular the relations between different ethnic communities, but primarily through the prism of social comedy rather than neo-realism.
The country’s two biggest hits – Abdellah Toukona Ferkous’ “Le Coq” (The Cock) and Said Naciri’s “Les Transporteurs” (The Transporters) – are comedies by actor-directors, with 96,777 and 95,535 admissions, respectively.
“Le Coq” is a comedy set in Marrakech about the relationship between a local merchant, played by the pic’s helmer Ferkous, and his French neighbor who transforms his Riad into a tourism establishment.
The eclecticism of Moroccan cinema, and its courage to tackle difficult subjects, is expected to continue and to be progressively reinforced over time.
In this process, Moroccan helmers will have to work out which “red lines” they can or can’t cross, but the overall sentiment expressed by directors was that the desire to explore complex and divisive issues continues to run very strong.
“Morocco continues to be the most open country for filmmaking in the Arab world. More than in Egypt or Tunisia.” concludes Lakhmari. “But there’s still a long way to go. Our audiences are conservative. But if you touch their hearts they will follow you. The course of history is with us.” - Agencies
