This year, the Atlas Workshops, an integral part of the Marrakech Film Festival, will showcase 28 exciting new films from diverse cinematic talents. Notably, three Moroccan filmmakers – Asmae El Moudir, whose critically acclaimed documentary "The Mother of All Lies" earned several prestigious awards at Cannes and Marrakech – Mounia Akl, whose "Costa Brava, Lebanon" took home accolades at Toronto and London – and Amjad Al Rasheed, whose "Inshallah a Boy" won numerous awards including those at Cannes, Rotterdam, and Camerimage – have been selected to participate in the esteemed festival.
Among this year's lineup are also several notable Palestinian directors, including Scandar Copti, who bagged the Étoile d'Or at Marrakech last year for his film "Happy Holidays," and Maha Haj, whose films "Personal Affairs" and "Mediterranean Fever" have garnered significant attention on the international stage.
A diverse group of filmmakers from Egypt, including Jad Chahine ("The Call of the Brook") and Mohammed Hammad ("Withered Green"), will also be showcasing their work at the festival. In addition to these, Tanzania's Amil Shivji ("Tug of War"), Egyptians Rami Kodeih ("Wolves"), and Ghanaian Amartei Armar ("Tsutsue") have been included in this year's Atlas Workshops.
From Lebanon comes a talented group of filmmakers including Vatche Boulghourjian ("Tramontane"), Rami Kodeih, and editor Michèle Tyan, who is set to make her fiction film debut. Furthermore, the selection includes several notable Moroccan filmmakers such as Basma Rkioui, Zineb Wakrim, and director Mohamed Zineddaine.
This year's edition of the Atlas Workshops will also feature five feature-length projects in development, led by Moroccan filmmakers Halima Elkhatabi, Reda Lahmouid, Zahoua Raji, Ayoub Layoussifi, Shaden Safieddine Tazi, and Leyna Tahiri.
Renowned Romanian director Cristian Mungiu serves as the patron of this year's Atlas Workshops. In a statement to Variety, Mungiu expressed his enthusiasm for returning to Marrakech, describing it as "a vibrant festival that uses cinema as a tool to promote unity among people from different corners of the world." He further emphasized the importance of cinema in shedding light on reality and fostering understanding between nations.
A diverse range of projects has been selected by the Atlas Workshops this year, including feature-length films and short features. Among these are notable entries such as Asmae El Moudir's "Don't Let the Sun Go Up on Me," Jad Chahine's "Under Her Eye," and Rami Kodeih's "Wolves." The festival also features several Moroccan talents through its Atlas Close-Ups section, including films by Leyna Tahiri ("Earth and Ashes"), Halima Elkhatabi ("Into the Blue Night"), Reda Lahmouid ("Remontada"), and Zahoua Raji & Ayoub Layoussifi ("The Tanjawi").
In addition to these, several short films have been selected for the Atlas Station – a platform dedicated to showcasing emerging talent. These include "Barzakh" by Kenza Tazi and "Mesk Ellil" by Adnane Rami.
Overall, this year's Atlas Workshops promises to be an exciting celebration of diversity in cinema from across Africa, Lebanon, Palestine, Morocco, Egypt, Tanzania, Ghana, Burkinabe Republic, Romania, and beyond.
Among this year's lineup are also several notable Palestinian directors, including Scandar Copti, who bagged the Étoile d'Or at Marrakech last year for his film "Happy Holidays," and Maha Haj, whose films "Personal Affairs" and "Mediterranean Fever" have garnered significant attention on the international stage.
A diverse group of filmmakers from Egypt, including Jad Chahine ("The Call of the Brook") and Mohammed Hammad ("Withered Green"), will also be showcasing their work at the festival. In addition to these, Tanzania's Amil Shivji ("Tug of War"), Egyptians Rami Kodeih ("Wolves"), and Ghanaian Amartei Armar ("Tsutsue") have been included in this year's Atlas Workshops.
From Lebanon comes a talented group of filmmakers including Vatche Boulghourjian ("Tramontane"), Rami Kodeih, and editor Michèle Tyan, who is set to make her fiction film debut. Furthermore, the selection includes several notable Moroccan filmmakers such as Basma Rkioui, Zineb Wakrim, and director Mohamed Zineddaine.
This year's edition of the Atlas Workshops will also feature five feature-length projects in development, led by Moroccan filmmakers Halima Elkhatabi, Reda Lahmouid, Zahoua Raji, Ayoub Layoussifi, Shaden Safieddine Tazi, and Leyna Tahiri.
Renowned Romanian director Cristian Mungiu serves as the patron of this year's Atlas Workshops. In a statement to Variety, Mungiu expressed his enthusiasm for returning to Marrakech, describing it as "a vibrant festival that uses cinema as a tool to promote unity among people from different corners of the world." He further emphasized the importance of cinema in shedding light on reality and fostering understanding between nations.
A diverse range of projects has been selected by the Atlas Workshops this year, including feature-length films and short features. Among these are notable entries such as Asmae El Moudir's "Don't Let the Sun Go Up on Me," Jad Chahine's "Under Her Eye," and Rami Kodeih's "Wolves." The festival also features several Moroccan talents through its Atlas Close-Ups section, including films by Leyna Tahiri ("Earth and Ashes"), Halima Elkhatabi ("Into the Blue Night"), Reda Lahmouid ("Remontada"), and Zahoua Raji & Ayoub Layoussifi ("The Tanjawi").
In addition to these, several short films have been selected for the Atlas Station – a platform dedicated to showcasing emerging talent. These include "Barzakh" by Kenza Tazi and "Mesk Ellil" by Adnane Rami.
Overall, this year's Atlas Workshops promises to be an exciting celebration of diversity in cinema from across Africa, Lebanon, Palestine, Morocco, Egypt, Tanzania, Ghana, Burkinabe Republic, Romania, and beyond.
! The selection of films looks super diverse and exciting, with so many talented filmmakers from Africa and the Middle East represented. I mean, have you seen the lineup? Asmae El Moudir's "The Mother of All Lies" is on my watchlist ASAP - it earned some major awards at Cannes and Marrakech last year! 
And Scandar Copti's film "Happy Holidays" won the Étoile d'Or last year, so I'm sure his new film will be just as great. 
What's your fave film or director from the selection?
ugh, I just love how the Atlas Workshops are bringin' all these talented filmmakers together from around the world! 
It's like, you gotta love the fact that we got Scandar Copti, Maha Haj, and Jad Chahine all under one roof, right? 
But at the same time, I'm over here thinkin', "Man, some of these films might be a bit too long..." like, hello, I get it, they're from different cultures and stuff, but can't we just get to the point already? 
Still, I'm hyped for the diversity of projects this year - gotta love seein' Amil Shivji's "Tug of War" alongside Basma Rkioui's "Burning Mirrors". It's gonna be lit! 
anyways glad to see more talented ppl like Asmae & Scandar getting recognition 
. What I love about the Atlas Workshops is that they're not just showcasing amazing films, but also giving a platform to emerging talent through the Atlas Station 
. It's gonna be an incredible celebration of diversity in cinema! 
can't wait to see what she has in store for us this time around 
i'm already planning my march festival trip 
cristian mungiu as patron is like a dream come true 
his words about cinema promoting unity among nations give me all the feels 
let's make some cinematic magic happen this year!!! 
. morocco's asmae el moudir is like a legend in the film industry right now, i mean have you seen her documentary "the mother of all lies"? 
. I mean, Asmae El Moudir's doc "The Mother of All Lies" is like, a masterpiece 
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. And I'm so here for it 
just saw that Marrakech Film Festival got some amazing talent from the Middle East & Africa 
hope it gets more recognition here too 
.
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. Can't wait to see all these talented filmmakers shine on the big screen 
!
Still, it's awesome to see Scandar Copti and Maha Haj making waves. And can we talk about how dope it is to see Egyptian and Ghanaian filmmakers getting their time in the spotlight? 
And with Cristian Mungiu as patron, I know this festival is gonna be all about celebrating unity and understanding through film. 
Can't wait to see what's in store for us! 
. Did you know that most of these participants are living below the poverty line? 
The average salary for a Moroccan filmmaker is around 500 dirhams per month 
, which translates to about $55 USD. Crazy, right? 
.
. I mean, seriously, have you seen the lineup for this year's Atlas Workshops? 28 films from diverse talents? More like 28 ways to get lost in a sea of mediocrity 
? Anyway, he's all like "unity among people from different corners of the world" – yeah, sure, until someone tells him to shut up and hand over their grant money