Marrakech – The eleventh edition of the Marrakech International Film Festival (FIFM) kicked off, on Friday, with a special tribute to Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan.
The opening ceremony, held at the Palais des Congres, was attended by constellation of movie stars from around the globe, who were greeted at their arrival on the red carpet by huge crowds of loving fans.
Speaking on this occasion, President of the FIFM’s feature film jury Serbian multi-award winner filmmaker and musician Emir Kusturica described the Marrakech International Film Festival as a big event where cinema can be celebrated and preserved.
The feature film jury also comprises US actress Jessica Chastain, Filipino director Brillante Mendoza, French Director and Actress Nicole Garcia, Romanian director and screenwriter Radu Mihaileanu, Italian actress Maya Sansa, Indian director, screenwriter and actress Aparna Sen and Moroccan director AbdelKader.
Fifteen films compete to win the Festival’s awards, namely the Grand Prix, the Jury prize, the best actor prize and the best actress prize.
The official competition was opened by the screening of the Amante du Rif by Moroccan director Narjiss Nejjar. The other competing films are: 180 (Switzerland), Baby Factory (Philipines), Belvédère (Bosnia), Death is my Profession (Iran), Don’t be afraid (Spain), I carried you home (Thailand), la terre outrage (France, Germany and Poland), Snowtown murders (Australia), Louise Wimmer (France), Out of Bounds (Denmark), River of Gold (Mexico), Seven Acts of Mercy (Italy), Sneakers (Bulgaria) and Without (USA).
Among the other well-known cinema icons who returned to Marrakech to take part in the festival, Hollywood actress Sigourney Weaver, President of the festival’s short film jury, to whom the FIFM paid a special tribute in 2008.
The first short film competition was launched in 2010 with a view to encouraging students from Moroccan cinema institutes.
This year’s edition will celebrate Mexican cinema through projecting films by the younger generation of Mexico’s filmmakers.
Throughout the nine-day event, several cinema figures will be honored including Moroccan actor Mohamed Bastaoui, Italian director Marco Bellochio, American director and scenario writer Terry Gilliam, American actor and director Forest Whitaker and French actor Roschdy Zem.
The festival also features Master classes supervised by French film director Jean Jacques Annaud, Italian film director Marco Bellochio and Turkish photographer and film director Nuri Bilge Ceylan as well as projections with audio descriptions.
The festival is held by the FIFM Foundation under the high patronage of HM King Mohammed VI.
