As part of the 7th edition of the Marrakech Festival, His Royal Highness Prince Moulay Rachid inaugurated the ESAV (The Moroccan Higher Institute for the Visual Arts), accompanied by the American director, screenwriter and producer Martin Scorsese. This school dedicated to cinema, television and visual communication, aims to encourage the emergence of Moroccan cinema, through the training of young professionals and technicians well versed in the careers of the silver screen.

The Feature Film Jury was presided over this year by Milos Forman, the Czech director and screenwriter, and included amongst others the Moroccan Hamid Bennani and the French actor of Senegalese-Malian origin Aissa Aiga.

A big tribute was paid to Egyptian cinema on its centenary, and many directors, actors and artists came to receive the Etoile D’or in Marrakech. The festival was also a good opportunity to give festival goers a look into Moroccan cinema through the screening of 14 films.

Other tributes were paid to talented artists including the Hollywood star Leonardo Dicaprio, the Japanese director Shinji Aoyama and the Moroccan director Mustapha Derkaoui.

Another notable presence was Martin Scorsese. After a tribute to him in 2005, he came back to present his latest film ‘Aviator’ in Jemaa El Fna, in the presence of Leonardo Dicaprio. Martin Scorsese also gave his “Cinema Lesson”, precursor of the Festival Master Classes, at ESAV in Marrakech. The Palestinian director Elia Suleiman and the French screenwriter Gilles Tauran were amongst those invited to attend the event.

As part of the Festival, a symposium on digital cinema was conducted demonstrating the dedication of the Marrakech Film Festival to fostering cultural change.