Morocco Travel Information

Morocco will take part in the Alexandria International Film Festival, due on August 26 through 31.

The festival, initiated by the Egyptian Association of Cinema Writers and Critics, will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Moroccan cinema and pay tribute to Morocco's Touriya Jabrane Kryatif, the first actress in the Arab world to hold the portfolio of Culture Minister.

The North African country will participate in the official competition of the festival with one movie, namely "Les jardins de Samira" (Samira's gardens) by Latif Lahlou. The film had already won the award of the best screenplay at the 31st World Film Festival in Montreal (2007).

Feature movies from 37 countries will be screened as part of the Festival, while the official competition will be limited to 11 Mediterranean countries, namely France, Greece, Albania, Spain, Italy, Macedonia, Turkey, Egypt, Morocco, Algeria and Lebanon.

In a related development, Morocco's filmmaker Nabil Ayouch voiced surprise following the cancellation of his film "Whatever Lola Wants" at the opening of the Festival.

The management of Alexandria International Film Festival announced Sunday the cancellation of the movie and its replacement by the Egyptian film "Baisers Volés", justifying the decision by the fact that "Whatever Lola Wants" was screened at several festivals.

MAP