First manifestations of a so-called "colonial" cinema
The first manifestations of Moroccan cinema date back to 1897. In that year, Louis Lumière shot the first sequences of the film Le Chevrier marocain, which aimed to expose distant places to the French. The film was the first in a long line of foreign shoots in Morocco, which continues to this day. The Lumière brothers' operators were sent to the four corners of the world, in search of exotic images. The early 20th century saw the opening of the first cinema in the city of Fez. The year 1919 brought Mektoub, the first feature film shot in Morocco, and more specifically in Marrakech. This film, directed by Frenchmen Jean Pinchon and Daniel Quintin, is considered the first of its kind in what might be called "colonial cinema", and paved the way for over fifty films in the years that followed, including René le Somptier 's Les Fils du soleil (1924) and Jean Benoît Lévy and Marie Epstein'sItto (1934). The Moroccan film industry was expanding, with more and more international films being shot. In 1935, the Cinéma Vox was built in Casablanca, the largest cinema in Africa at the time. Unfortunately, it was destroyed in the 1970s. 1944 saw the creation of the CCM (Centre Cinématographique Marocain) and the opening of the Souissi studios and laboratories in Rabat.
Ousfour, Bénani and El Maânouni
Until Morocco's independence in 1956, there were very few filmmakers. Nevertheless, one name stands out from this period: Mohamed Ousfour. Born in Safi in 1926, this self-taught director was one of the pioneers of Moroccan cinema. Having already made a number of short films before independence, he was responsible for the first Moroccan feature film, Le Fils maudit (The Cursed Son), made in 1958. This film tells the story of a young man predestined for delinquency and crime. Ousfour was not only the film's director, but also its screenwriter and cinematographer. He paved the way for and guided a number of directors, including Ahmed Bouanani (director of Mémoire 14, a feature film turned into a short due to censorship) and Hamid Bénani. The latter directed the renowned Wechma ("traces" in French, 1970), which tells the story of the internal struggle of young Messaoud, oppressed by his family and society, who gradually descends into delinquency. This feature-length fiction film won critical acclaim, not only in Morocco, but also internationally, where it received numerous festival awards. Considered experimental, it marked the beginning of modern Moroccan cinema. At the time, it was difficult to be a filmmaker in Morocco, where support for creation was not one of the government's priorities. Moroccan cinema oscillated between commercial cinema (often bad) and elitist cinema. However, in 1978, director Ahmed El Maânouni's film Alyam, Alyam was selected for the Cannes Film Festival. In 1981, he released Transes, a film now classified as "cult", so much so that in 2007, Martin Scorsese chose this work to be the first to be restored by the World Cinema Foundation, and subsequently presented at the Cannes Film Festival in 2007.
The 2000s
The beginning of the 21st century brings the first edition of the Marrakech International Film Festival and the inauguration of the Tangier Cinematheque. Tangier also joins the club of cities with renowned festivals, with the International Short Film Festival. In 2007, Ahmed El Maânouni directed Les Cœurs brûlés, about the introspection of a young Moroccan living in France, following the death of his violent uncle who raised him after the death of his mother. The film won numerous international awards, including Best Picture at the Dubai International Film Festival and Best Director at the Oran Film Festival. The 2000s saw the arrival of a new wave of filmmakers determined to bring their projects to fruition. Among them was the celebrated French-Moroccan director Nabil Ayouch, whose first feature Mektoub (1997) achieved a record 350,000 admissions in Morocco and was shortlisted to represent the country at the Oscars that year. Ayouch has won numerous awards for his films, including Ali Zaoua (2001), Whatever Lola Wants (2008) and Les Chevaux de Dieu (2012). His film Much Loved, selected for the Directors' Fortnight in 2015, provoked controversy in Morocco, where it was seen as an attack on the image of the country and Moroccan women. The lead actress, Loubna Abidar, nonetheless burst onto the screen and won the César for Best Actress, up against Catherine Deneuve and Catherine Frot. Nabil Ayouch's brother Hicham, also a filmmaker, came to prominence with his documentary Les Reines du Roi (2005) on the new status of Moroccan women. In 2009, he directed Fissures, his second feature-length fiction film, which was applauded by European critics and then screened at the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Tate Modern in London.
International filming on Moroccan soil
Although rich in artists, Morocco in the cinema exists mainly through filming as the setting of choice. Indeed, the light of the South, the low cost of labour and the varied landscapes make Morocco an ideal filming location for many directors. David Lean's mythical film, Lawrence of Arabia (1962), was shot in the kasbah of Aït-Benhaddou. In Ouarzazate, studios are frequently used for American productions. If desert landscapes lend themselves to westerns, these studios are used for all types of films. Martin Scorsese shot there Kundun (1997), the film about the life of the Dalai Lama; Alain Chabat, Asterix: Mission Cleopatra (2002), with Gérard Depardieu, Christian Clavier and Jamel Debbouze. In 2006, Babel, with Brad Pitt and La Colline a des yeux were also filmed in the vicinity. In 2014, the filming of Jalil Lespert'sYves Saint-Laurent will be split between Paris and Marrakech. Pierre Bergé, companion of the famous designer Yves Saint-Laurent, authorizes the team to film in the couple's intimate places, including the Jardin Majorelle, one of the most famous and mythical gardens in Morocco. On the small screen, the new season of Prison Break (2016) is directed for several months in Casablanca, Rabat and Ouarzazate giving work to many Moroccan actors.
