The 29th edition of the European Film Weeks, organized by the European Union in Morocco, returns this year from December 7 to 21, with a selection of 8 award-winning films and 3 promising short films from filmmakers at the world’s biggest film festivals. Films from the south of the Mediterranean will be screened in Casablanca, Rabat, Marrakech and Tangier.
After a one-year hiatus following the start of the pandemic crisis, the 29th edition of the European Film Weeks is back in action this year and opened on Friday evening at Cinema Revival in Rabat, with the screening of one of the event’s films. May 2022 is the year of Swedish director Ruben Östlund, who won the Palme d’Or at Cannes. The film represents a social satire that uses harsh humor and caustic language.
“We kick off the 29th edition of the European Film Weeks. After a year of suspension due to the epidemic we are starting again with the speed of ships. So we’re back in 2022 with a very strong, very diverse line-up, we have eight films representing ten different European nations. We have a project for all the public and I want to invite our followers to watch it, because it will make you laugh, it will make you cry, it will make you travel but it will make you appreciate and know diversity. Who is Europe?“, handed over Hesperus EN Patricia Lombard Cusack, EU Ambassador to Morocco.
The messenger continues: “This is our goal at these weeks of European cinema, which we have been organizing for almost 30 years. We have brought to Morocco the best of European cinema, the best creators and future creators who have won prizes in recent years, to bring us closer, to bring this European culture to Morocco, to enrich each other and contribute to the promotion of these values shared by the European Union and Morocco through culture, and in this case through cinema.».
At the same time, Ali Haji, artistic director of the European Film Weeks explains Hesperus EN That “European Film Weeks was created in 1991 at the initiative of the European Union in Morocco and is an event eagerly awaited by Moroccan film lovers and it gives the opportunity to discover 8 great European films every year. The biggest international cinematographic events such as Cannes, Venice, Toronto, Berlin Festival… This year we present a selection, completed with a Moroccan film, a Lebanese film and a Palestinian film from the south of the Mediterranean.».
“The 29th edition opens with the Swedish director’s film “San’s Filter”, which won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival last May and helped its director to the second Palme d’Or gold of his career already. It won an award at Cannes in 2017. These eight films from ten different countries fall under the co-production system, so the European countries mentioned are Germany, Luxembourg, Spain, Belgium, Italy, France and Romania in a limited number.” says Ali Haji.
Finally, the art director makes it known “It is a great diversity selection, with films from various genres including thriller, comedy, social satire, political fiction. It is a program that is very broad and this year deals with very different themes and subjects.».
Here are the screenings scheduled in Rabat from December 10 to 17 at Cinema Renaissance:
– Sunday, December 11, 2022: “Icarus” by Luxembourger Carlo Vogel;
– Monday, December 12, 2022: “Nostalgia” by Italian Mario Martone;
– Tuesday, December 13, 2022: “Other People’s Children” by French Rebecca Slodowski, “Jamar” by Moroccan Sami Sidali;
– Wednesday, December 14, 2022: “As Pestas” by Rodrigo Sorocoyan from Spain;
– Thursday, December 15: “RMN” by Romanian Christian Mungulu;
– Friday, December 16: “Harga” by Lotfi Nathan, “Last Days of Summer” by Palestinian Nayef Hammoud;
– Saturday, December 17: “Close” by Belgian Lucas Dont, “Warsha” by Lebanese Dania Pitair.