This eclectic program is presented by the Cinémathèque de Tanger as part of the “Fragments of Morocco” carte blanche, an initiative of the regional digital film archive Mémoire des images réanimées d’Alsace (RIMA).
The program notably includes the French premiere of the film « Mirage », the sole feature film by the late filmmaker, poet, novelist, and illustrator Ahmed Bouanani, produced in 1979. It also features the documentaries « La Mère de tous les mensonges » by Asmae El Moudir, released in 2023, and « Cinq Regards » by Karim Debbagh (2025). On the fiction side, film lovers from Morocco and Strasbourg will discover or rediscover Casanegra (Nour-Eddine Lakhmari – 2008), as well as Headbang Lullaby (Hicham Lasri – 2017) and El Batalett (Dalila Ennadre – 2000).
For Malika Chaghal and Amaal Meftouh Ezzeyani, respectively vice president and operations manager of the Cinémathèque de Tanger, the selected films “are those with which Moroccan audiences most deeply identify, works that marked a turning point in Moroccan cinema, left a lasting imprint on its history, and spread more through word of mouth than through international screenings. This is the paradox at their heart: “although essential in Morocco, they remain largely unseen abroad and absent from international distribution networks.”
“Bringing them all the way to Strasbourg fills a blind spot. It also means placing our trust in you, the Strasbourg audience, and sharing with you the perspective of Moroccan viewers, to encounter a cinema that did not wait to be validated by the outside world to exist,” they stated, as quoted in a press release from the organizers.
In addition, the “Fragments of Morocco” carte blanche introduces the project “What Became of the Tirailleurs? Alsace-Morocco: Images, Memories, and Stories,” which seeks to highlight the historical ties between Alsace and Morocco through the collection, digitization, and promotion of private archives in Strasbourg and Tangier, according to the same source.
“This shared memory is shaped by family and personal histories spanning both shores of the Mediterranean,” the statement emphasizes.
Written in French by La rédaction with MAP, edited in English by Amina Kadiri
