Cinema, my love!” by Driss Chouika

“Indeed, if the histories of cinema and of the city are so intertwined that it is unthinkable that cinema could have developed without the city, and if the city was indisputably shaped by the cinematographic form, neither cinema nor have urban studies given due attention to their connection. »

David B. Clarke

Requested by the organizers of the International Film Festival of Fez, I designed, in collaboration with Mohammed Chouika, a conference/debate on the theme: “The image of Fez in cinema“. This gave rise to a very interesting film-lover’s encounter, in the magnificent setting of one of the most original riads in the Medina of Fez. Moderated by the author and film critic Mohammed Chouika who introduced it with a global thematic overview, the participants then had the privilege of following three rich and instructive presentations. The 1st, presented by the author and critic My Driss Jaidi, entitled “The image of Fez in colonial cinema“, illustrated by photos and film extracts, traced the history of the visual presence of Fez in films from the colonial era, from the film “New Men” by EB Donatien and Edouard Emile Violet (1922) to “The Unknown Road” by Léon Poirier (1947). The 2nd, given by the author and critic Boubker Hihi, entitled “Representations of Al-Qaraouiyine University in Moroccan films“, depicted this thousand-year-old university as it was seen by three Moroccan directors: Hamid Benani in the film “The Prayer of the Absent“ (1995), Jamal Belmajdoub in “Yacout“ (2000) and Hicham Regragui in his short film “Emma“ (2017). Then the 3rd, initiated by the poet and critic Mbarek Housni, entitled “The image of Fez in the cinema: a spiritual nostalgia“, explained the presence of a spiritual nostalgia for the city of Fez in the two Moroccan films: “ A Door to Heaven“ (1988) by Farida Benlyazid and “Burnt Hearts“ (2007) by Ahmed El Maanouni.

THE CITY AND THE CINEMA

Cinema was born in the city. Cinema has therefore been, since its birth, a city art. Thus, Mohammed Chouika presented the theme of the conference by specifying that, since the colonial period, the city of Fez has attracted many people interested in the fields of the image, including photographers, filmmakers, publicity men and of shows, who have found there what suits their imaginary perceptions, whether as spaces or places conducive to what they want to represent and express. The city has attracted the attention of foreign and Moroccan filmmakers. Despite the colonial period characterized by a clear ideological background that aims to justify colonization, the grandeur of the city has remained vigorously present through its distinctive architectural and cultural signs. The city has an imperial heritage that made it one of the most important metropolises in the Mediterranean and one of the spiritual capitals of Africa, Islam and Arabs, which reflected these characteristics in the films that were shot there.

What attracted the directors to come to Fez? What are the most important foreign and domestic films that have been shot there? How did his image crystallize in the cinematographic imagination? What are the

signs of the city in the films?

FES IN THE COLONIAL CINEMA

Then, the author and film critic My Driss Jaidi gave a broad overview, well documented by photos and excerpts, on the films shot in Fez during the colonial period. He was particularly interested in colonial films produced between 1922 and 1948, of which the following is the list:

The new menby EB Donatien and Edouard Emile Violet (1922), (an illustration of Claude Farrère’s popular novel, “New Men”); Sons of the Sun of René Le Somptier (1924), with a running time of 264 minutes, (Sons of the Sun was presented in the form of a cine-novel in eight episodes); In the shadow of the Harem by Léon Mathot and André Liabel (1928); The bugle sounds (the buggle sounds) by Georges Hill (1928); The 5 Cursed Gentlemen by Julien Duvivier (1932); The call of silence by Léon Poirier (1933); The new men by Marcel L’Herbier (1936); The last ride by Léon Mathot (1946); Serenade in Meryem by Norbert Gernolle (1946); Midnight Clock Street by Jean Lordier (1947); The Seventh Gate of André Zwobada (1947); The unknown roadby Léon Poirier (1947); Fes by André Zwobada (Documentary – 1948 – 11 mn); Moulay Driss by Philipe Este (Dic. – 1948 – 10 mins); Cities and towns: Fes by Henri Jacques (Doc. – 9 mins).

AL-QARAOUIYINE SEEN BY MOROCCAN FILMMAKERS

Critic Boubker Hihi took over to explain how filmmakers F. Benlyazid, J. Belmejdoub and H. Regragui saw and filmed ِAl-Qaraouiyine University in Fes. This millennial university was built in 859 BC by Fatima Al Fihriya. They don’t just teach religion, as some might think. There are also important classes on Aesthetics and Algebra, says one of the characters in Belmejdoub’s film.

The events of “Yaqout” take place in the 1940s while those of the other two films are linked to their production periods. The film also refers to the resistance against the French colonizer and claims that the university formed the core of the resistance against French occupation.

On the other hand, in the film “The Prayer of the Absent“, the characters are in conflict with the dominant mentality in society, based on oppression, and the university is perceived as one of the places of this oppression. It appears as a space rejecting differences in religious interpretation.

As for the short film by F. Regragui, it emphasizes the space of the university library which is no longer a simple element of the decor, but a main element of the subject of the film. And if the library is a place of knowledge and light, the camera shows us books by Sayed Qotb and Ibn Taimia whose reading has a negative effect on the character’s behavior towards his mother…

SPIRITUAL NOSTALGIA

As for the poet and critic Mbarek Housni, in his intervention entitled “The image of Fez in the cinema: a spiritual nostalgia“, he specifies from the outset that “Fez is not content to be photographed, filmed, captured anywhere how, but with its specific particularities, the most important of which is that it is an ancient great city, one of the centers of the world, with a unique labyrinthine architecture that dictates the pace of cinema”. And from there, he develops all the appeal of this thousand-year-old city through a very witty reading of the two films by Farida Benlyazid and Ahmed Maanouni which were shot there: “A door to the sky“ and “Burnt hearts“.

For the author, in these two films, Fez is fully present, from beginning to end. The two filmmakers attempt to capture this “strange and inspiring thing”, in the words of Japanese director Akira Koruzawa. It is a departure from a specific emotional situation that has a nostalgic characteristic. And that necessarily involves a poetic cinema. The camera doesn’t just accompany the characters, and the editing isn’t content to string together what it has captured according to an external, neutral narrative logic. No, in both films, there is the Absent/Present, and there is a regulating vision of events, despite gaps…

In any case, this conference/debate was, by far, the brightest moment of this 2nd edition of this still “beginning” festival. And I do hope that the idea of ​​developing the work of this conference/debate to draw a book from it will follow its way.

Cinema, my love!” by Driss Chouika – THE IMAGE OF FES IN CINEMA