Asmae El Moudir’s film, called “Kadib Abyad” (or “The Mother of All Lies”), won the Étoile d’Or Grand Prix at the 20th Marrakech International Film Festival (FIFM), the festival’s official competition jury announced during the closing ceremony held on Saturday at Marrakech’s Palais des Congrès.
Moudir’s 96-minute feature film relates the story of a young woman’s quest for truth in the web of lies surrounding her family originating in the bread riots of Casablanca in 1981.
Also at the ceremony, the Jury Prize was jointly awarded to the films “Hounds” by Kamal Lazraq (Morocco) and “Bye Bye Tiberias” by Lina Soualem (Palestine).
The Best Directing Prize went to Senegalese director Ramata-Toulaye Sy for her film “Banel & Adama,” while the Best Actress award went to Asja Zara Lagumdžija for her role in “Excursion” by Una Gunjak (Bosnia and Herzegovina). The award for Best Performance by an Actor was earned by Turkish Doğa Karakaş for his role in “Dormitory” by Nehir Tuna.
The jury for this 20th edition, led by Jessica Chastain, included nine globally renowned film actors and professionals, including Iranian actress Zar Amir, French actress Camille Cottin, Australian actor and director Joel Edgerton, British director Joanna Hogg, American director Dee Rees, Swedish-Egyptian director Tarek Saleh, Swedish actor Alexander Skarsgård, and French-Moroccan author Leïla Slimani.
14 films were screened during the official competition, including 10 debut feature films and 8 directed by women. This year’s edition showcased a diverse range of productions with 75 films from 36 countries, distributed across Official Competition, Gala Screenings, Special Screenings, the 11th Continent, Moroccan Panorama, Cinema for Young Audiences, screenings on Jemaa El Fna, and Tributes to figures of world cinema sections.
The FIFM also held the 6th edition of the Atlas Workshops, a support program for young filmmakers from Africa and the Middle East with projects in development and films in post-production. Additionally, children from the Al Haouz province, affected by the September 8 earthquake, were invited to attend screenings in the Cinema for Young Audience section to promote this form of art among young audiences.