Morocco Shines at FESPACO 2025 with a Diverse Selection of Films
The 29th edition of the Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou (FESPACO) will take place from February 22 to March 1, 2025, featuring an official selection of 235 films from various countries, including Morocco. This event, one of the most significant in African cinema, will highlight the diversity and creativity of film production across the continent.
Morocco is actively participating in this edition with several films across different categories. In the “Feature Film” section, Nabil Ayouch’s film Everybody Loves Touda will be in competition, while the documentary The Mother of All Lies by Asmae El Moudir will represent the country in the “Feature Documentary” category. Morocco will also be present in the “FESPACO Shorts Competition” with the documentary Assassination by Yassine Ait Fkir, and in the “Critics’ Week Competition” and the “Sukabè” section with Daoud Ouled-Syad’s film The Blue Lake.
In the “Panorama” section, two Moroccan films will be showcased: Backstage by Afef Ben Mahmoud and Khalil Benkirane, as well as The Divorced Women of Casablanca by Mohamed Bensouda.
Moussa Alex Sawadogo, the General Delegate of FESPACO, revealed during a press conference in Ouagadougou that the organizing committee had selected 1,351 films from 48 nationalities across Africa and the Caribbean. Among these, 17 feature-length fiction films and 15 documentaries have been chosen for competition. These films reflect the dynamism of African film production and the creative spirit of their directors.
Under the theme “Cinemas of Africa and Cultural Identities,” FESPACO 2025 will honor Chad as the guest country. Morocco has also made its mark in previous editions, notably in 2019 when Jawad Rhalib’s In the Time When Arabs Danced won the Silver Stallion, and Selma Bargach’s Indigo received the African Film Critic’s Award. In 2015, Hicham Ayouch’s Fever won the prestigious Golden Stallion of Yennenga, the festival’s highest accolade.
Established in 1969, FESPACO is one of Africa’s largest film festivals, held biannually.
