Four films have made it to the prestigious Cannes Festival after being previously chosen and supported by the Atlas Workshops, a talent and industry growth initiative developed by the International Film Festival of Marrakech (FIFM).
With two films chosen for the “Un Certain Regard” (a particular look) category and another included in the “La Quinzaine des cinéastes” category, this is Morocco’s first time being present at the festival with three submissions.
Jordanian-produced, the fourth film financed by Atlas Worhops made it into the Critic’s Week category.
These picks demonstrate the importance of FIFM’s cinema talent development program as an incubator.
Presented twice at the Atlas Workshops, “The mother of all lies” by Asmae El Moudir won the workshop’s prize for development in 2019, and the prize for post-production in 2021.
“Les Meutes” by Kamal Lazraq previously won the Artekino International prize in the 2019 edition. The 2 films will be presented in the “Un Certain Regard” section at Cannes, this upcoming May.
“Deserts” by the great Faouzi Bensaïdi, presented in the Atlas Film Showcase section last November in Marrakech, will be shown at the “Quinzaine des cinéastes”.
The Atlas Workshops’ support work is amplified significantly by these selections, as they also highlight the strength of Moroccan cinema, which had never before been present with three films in Cannes in the same year.
The recent selections of several Moroccan films at prestigious film festivals, such as the Venice Film Festival, the Locarno Festival last year, and others, have contributed significantly to this historical achievement.
The Marrakech International Film Festival fosters the growth of a new generation of Moroccan, Arab, and African filmmakers through this initiative and provides a forum for interactions between professionals from across the world and local artists.
The Atlas Workshops have funded 111 projects and films across five editions, including 48 Moroccan ones.
The 6th edition of the Atlas Workshops will take place from November 27 to November 30, 2023, as part of the 20th Marrakech International Film Festival’s program, which is slated to run from November 24 to December 2, according to the FIFM’s organizers.
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