Organized by the Italian Embassy in Morocco and the Italian Cultural Institute of Rabat in collaboration with the Methexis Onlus Association, the Hiba Foundation, the Renaissance Cinema of Rabat, the Tangier Cinematheque and the Higher Institute of Audiovisual and Cinema Professions of Rabat (ISMAC Rabat), this event, dedicated to the best of Euro-Mediterranean cinema, brings films, guests, presentations, masterclasses and shows to Morocco.
With its thirty years of history, the MedFilm Festival is “the only event specializing in the distribution of Mediterranean and European cinema”, notes a press release from the organizers, emphasizing that this cultural event is “a privileged channel” for recognizing and appreciating cultural diversity as a value and driver of development.
In Morocco, “the Festival consolidates the dialogue with the cinematographic tradition of the Kingdom”, reaffirming the link of “cultural proximity” which unites Italy and Morocco within the framework of a Mediterranean extended to the African space, a common place which draws its strength and its identity from its multiple cultural expressions and from the meeting between artists.
Thanks to the strong and consolidated partnership with the Hiba Foundation and ISMAC, MedFilm in Morocco presents itself with a program rich in previews and special events. The selection of the 20 films proposed this year is entrusted to the programmers Alessandro Zoppo and Martina Zigiotti, under the artistic direction of Ginella Vocca.
Seven Italian films, selected among the most awarded of 2024, are on the program, starting with the opening event, “I, Captain” by Matteo Garrone, an adventurous and moving odyssey of two young Senegalese dreaming of a future in Europe, winner of seven David di Donatello and candidate in the final selection of the 2024 Oscars for the best international film, it adds.
The Italian programme is enhanced by the previews of Margherita Vicario’s “Gloria!”, a passionate and vital homage to the great forgotten female musicians of history; Michele Riondino’s “Laf” (Palazzina Laf), a courageous first film about a great wound in Italian history, winner of three David di Donatello and two Nastri d’Argento; “Un mondo a parte” (A World Apart) by Riccardo Milani, a bittersweet comedy about the world of school, a great box-office success, the short film “Tilipirche” (Grasshoppers) by Francesco Piras, closing short of the Venice SIC 80 and selected for Clermont-Ferrand 2024, the documentaries “L’esercito più piccolo del mondo” (The Smallest Army in the World) by Gianfranco Pannone and “Parlate a bassa voce” (Speak in a Low Voice) by Esmeralda Calabria, presented in a special screening for ISMAC students.
The Italian delegation is present in force with the participation of the screenwriter Massimo Gaudioso, invited to Rabat to present “I, Captain”, the director Margherita Vicario and the producer Carlo Cresto-Dina for “Gloria!”, the editor and director Esmeralda Calabria, protagonist of one of the two masterclasses reserved for ISMAC students entitled “The rewriting of the film, dialogue between editor and director”, Gianfranco Pannone, accompanied by the director of photography Tarek Ben Abdallah, for the masterclass on “The cinema of the real and photography in the documentary genre”.
To seal the bond between Italy and Morocco, the screening of a significant Moroccan film, “Rêves ardents” (Shi ghadi ou shi jay, Boiling Dreams) by Hakim Belabbes, previewed at MedFilm 2012 where it received the Jury Prize, will be organized, as well as a selection of diploma short films made by ISMAC students.
Seven international films, among the feature and short films, from the 29th edition of the Festival and in absolute preview in Morocco, will also be screened: the Iranian “Endless Borders” by Abbas Amini (MedFilm and Human Rights Prize from Amnesty International), an epic film about love, exile and the choice to stay and fight for an ideal, the Lebanese “Dancing On the Edge of a Volcano” by Cyril Aris (Amore & Psiche Prize for best film), a hymn to the saving power of art, the Tunisian “Behind the Mountains” by Mohamed Ben Attia, the escape towards freedom of a father and his son, in the metaphor of flight to go beyond the natural borders of the world. The multi-award-winning director Abbas Amini will be the guest of the Festival to meet the spectators in Rabat.
The program is completed by five short films, among the most appreciated of the 2023 edition of MedFilm: the French “La Voix des autres” by Fatima Kaci (winner of the Methexis Award for best short film), the Syrian “Back” by Yazan Rabee (Cervantes Award for the most creative short film), the Palestinian “The Key” by Rakan Mayasi (Special Jury Mention), the Turkish “Things Unheard Of” by Ramazan Kılıç (second Special Jury Mention) and the already mentioned “Tilipirche” by Francesco Piras.
The big news for 2024 and the special event of this 30th edition is the creation of the MedFilm Festival Prize for young film talents: three grants (of 2,500, 1,500 and 1,000 euros) for which students who have made short films for their ISMAC diploma compete.
Six works of different styles and genres have been selected, revealing the talents of tomorrow. The grants for the three best short films will be awarded by a Jury composed of Tarek Ben Abdallah, Esmeralda Calabria and Gianfranco Pannone. The prizes will be presented by Giulia De Luca Gabrielli, head of the Methexis Project, on Saturday, September 28 at the Renaissance Cinema in Rabat.
For the winner of the first prize, the scholarship will be completed by an invitation to participate in the 30th edition of the MedFilm Festival in Rome as a member of the jury of the Short Film Competition within the Methexis Project, which brings together in Rome film students from Mediterranean schools, filmmakers of the future of the region, highlighting once again the special bond between Italy and Morocco.
The already rich program will be enhanced by two gala evenings (Sunday, September 29 at the Mohammed V National Theater in Rabat and Wednesday, October 2 at the Palace of Arts and Culture in Tangier) entrusted to the dance show “La Dolce Vita: from Rota to Hans Zimmer, a journey through the soundtracks of the most beloved films” by the Balletto di Milano company, accompanied by the Amadeus Philharmonic Orchestra of Trecate, conducted by Maestro Gianmario Cavallaro.
Entrance to screenings at the Cinéma Renaissance in Rabat (25-29 June 2024) and the Cinémathèque de Tangier (2-5 October 2024) is free, subject to availability. All films are in their original version with French and English subtitles.
2024-09-21 14:10:26