FIFM: A Moroccan director, screenwriter wins Grand Prize, a first in the festival’s history
The Moroccan director, screenwriter, and producer, Asmae El Moudir, has won the Grand Prize of the 20th Marrakech International Film Festival, for her film The Mother of All Lies, a first time in the festival’s long history.
The 96-minute Arabic-language movie thus becomes the first Moroccan film to win L’Étoile d’Or in the history of the International Film Festival of Marrakech, held under the high patronage of King Mohammed VI.
The movie, released in 2023, had also won the Best Director award in the “Un Certain Regard” section of the Cannes Film Festival.
In addition to the Grand Prize won by Asmae El Moudir, Morocco was also represented in this edition’s awards by the Jury Prize which went to the film “Gangs” by Kamal Lazraq, which tied with “Bye Bye Tibériade” by Lina Soualem from Palestine.
Kamal Lazrak dedicated this prestigious win in his homeland to the main actors in his movie.
« This one is for ‘Wlad Chaab’, Ayoub El Aid and Abdellatif Mastouri (the actors) who participated in this adventure, » said the winning director.
The Palestinian film « Bye bye Tibériade » is an emotional distressing documentary on loss of mothers and land.
Lead character and mother of the director Lina Soualem, Hollywood actress Hiam Abbas received the trophy in tears and thanked the Moroccan public for their reception of the film.
The director, Lina, couldn’t make it to the awarding ceremony due to the death of her father-in-law. However, she sent a very heart drenching speech on the ongoing bombings in Palestine.
Speaking at the closing ceremony of the 20th edition of the Festival, Asmae El Moudir expressed her heartfelt thanks and immense gratitude to the King, “The Father of all Moroccans.” She also expressed gratitude for the Foundation of the International Film Festival of Marrakech and the Atlas Workshops, which allowed her, one of the program’s graduates, to win the first Étoile d’Or for Morocco.
She thanked the Atlas Workshop program, an industry talent-development program initiated in 2018 by the FIFM, for giving Moroccans chances to meet international cinema professionals, and the proper funding to make high quality movies.
The Grand Prize winner took the opportunity to share her story with the audience.
She emphasized her journey from one workshop to another to meet directors and screenwriters participating in this platform, ensuring that she fully benefited from their knowledge and experiences.
“We, the laureates of the Marrakech Film Festival Foundation, have created this Étoile that we dedicate to all Moroccans who have been eagerly waiting for it,” she said.
The Mother of All Lies tells the story of the young filmmaker Asmae, who visits her parents in Casablanca to help them move out. While packing, Asmae begins sorting through the old belongings of her childhood. Suddenly, she comes across a photo that becomes the starting point of an investigation where Asmae questions all the little lies her family told her. Asmae explores the memory of her neighborhood and her country as she delves into the past.
Born in Salé in 1990, Asmae El Moudir has directed documentaries for several Moroccan and foreign television channels. After several short films, she directed “La Carte postale” in 2020, selected at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) and the International Film Festival of Marrakech.
The 20th FIFM paid tribute to both Mads Mikkelsen and Faouzi Bensaidi this year, two completely different artists who share the love of film, Marrakech and art.
