20TH edition NOVEMBER 24 TO DECEMBER 2, 2023
20th edition
November 24 to December 2, 2023
Having obtained a Doctor of Physics degree from the University of Nancy in 1981, Daoud Aoulad-Syad began working in cinema after attending a film workshop at La Fémis in 1989. During this workshop, he directed the short films K ricature and Paris, 13 July, which were followed by Mémoire ocre (1991), Entre l’absence et l’oubli (1993), and Al oued (1995). He made his feature-length directorial debut with Farewell Forain (1998), which won the Critics' Award at the Montpellier Mediterranean Film Festival. His subsequent films are The Wind Horse (2002), Tarfaya (2003), Waiting for Pasolini (2007), which was named Best Arab Film at the Cairo International Film Festival, The Mosque (2010), Les Voix du désert (2017), and, most recently, The Blue Lake (2024)
Youssef is a twelve-year-old blind orphan. He lives with his grandfather Allal, a taxi driver, and grandmother Ouardia, in a village lost in the desert. One day, Allal surprises him by buying him a camera. Youssef begins to photograph everything around him. After he hears about a trip blind people from abroad make to the blue lake in the desert, Youssef cares about nothing other than making this trip himself.
Director Daoud Aoulad-Syad
Producer Cécile Aoulad-Syad, Abdesselam El Meftahi
Screenwriter Abdelmjid Seddati, El Houssain Chani, Daoud Aoulad-Syad
Cinematographer Ali Benjelloun
Production Designer
Art Director
Editor Tarik Amrani, Daoud Aoulad-Syad
Sound Abdelaziz Ghassine, Sara Kaddouri
Music Mourad Zdaidate
Color Color
Supported by 
Production Company Les Films du Sud
International Sales Company
Founded by His Majesty King Mohammed VI in July 2002, the Marrakech International Film Festival Foundation is a non-profit organization of public interest.
Presided over by His Royal Highness Prince Moulay Rachid, the Foundation has as its primary objective the organisation of the Marrakech International Film Festival and any related events, all of which aim to encourage the creation, promotion, and distribution of works of cinema throughout the Kingdom of Morocco and around the globe.
Founded by His Majesty King Mohammed VI in July 2002, the Marrakech International Film Festival Foundation is a non-profit organization of public interest.
Presided over by His Royal Highness Prince Moulay Rachid, the Foundation has as its primary objective the organisation of the Marrakech International Film Festival and any related events, all of which aim to encourage the creation, promotion, and distribution of works of cinema throughout the Kingdom of Morocco and around the globe.