The 23rd Marrakech International Film Festival has unveiled a lineup of 76 films from 39 countries, including 11 Moroccan productions across its various sections. Three other films shot in Morocco will also feature in the program. The festival runs from November 20 to 28, 2026.
The official competition will feature 14 first and second feature films vying for the Golden Star. The jury will be chaired by French actress Marion Cotillard. Three films will have their world premieres at the festival: Alkebulan, Waves of Silence and Les Chiffonniers du Caire.
Morocco’s entry in the competition is Alkebulan, directed by Yassine Marco Marroccu. The adventure story moves between the Sahara in the 1960s and Italy in the 1930s. Iranian-Norwegian filmmaker Farzad Samsami will present Waves of Silence, a moral drama about migrant shipwrecks filmed in Morocco and starring Amine Ennaji. Rani and Salem Massalha will also make their debut with Les Chiffonniers du Caire, an intimate thriller set within Egypt’s Coptic community.
Collective trauma and personal struggles
Several films explore the lasting impact of conflict and social divisions. In Ben’Imana, Marie-Clémentine Dusabejambo examines the trauma left by the genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda and the challenges of reconciliation. Abdallah Al-Khatib’s Chroniques des années de siège follows residents trying to survive war, shortages and impossible choices. In Furies, Rami Kodeih turns to Lebanon’s economic crisis, telling the story of two sisters who plan a bank robbery to recover their frozen savings and pay for a life-saving operation.
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Family ties and exile shape other stories in the competition. La Maison du vent, by Auguste Bernard Kouemo Yanghu, follows a Cameroonian mother struggling to stay connected with her children after they move abroad. In Congo Boy, Rafiki Fariala portrays a young Congolese refugee living in the Central African Republic, torn between family responsibilities and his musical ambitions.
Friendship, desire and the disillusionment of youth
Women’s experiences are also prominent in this year’s selection. Mexican filmmaker Fernanda Tovar’s Chicas tristes tests the friendship between two swimmers after a sexual assault. South Korean director Yoon Dan-bi explores the first stirrings of love over the course of a summer in The World Before. In Marie Madeleine, Haitian filmmaker Gessica Généus brings together a woman who makes a living through prostitution and a young evangelical preacher in Jacmel. Their encounter unfolds around desire, faith and the search for freedom.
The process of discovering the world also runs through Eklipse, by Manuel Wetscher, which examines prejudice in a rural Austrian community. Shalini Adnani’s Our Share of Sand follows a young girl as she begins to understand the injustices underpinning her family’s prosperity in India. Jacqueline Lentzou rounds out the selection with A Day in the Life of Jo: Chapter Phaedra, a coming-of-age story that breaks away from conventional realism.
From Jesse Eisenberg to Luca Guadagnino: the gala screenings
The festival will open with Mona, a comedy by Jesse Eisenberg. Julianne Moore plays a housewife who discovers a new sense of purpose through amateur theater.
The gala screenings will include two world premieres. Leila et la nuit, directed by Fellipe Barbosa, draws inspiration from the life of French-Moroccan photographer Leila Alaoui, with Roschdy Zem and Marina Foïs in the cast. Omar Hilal’s His Weakest Creatures stars Ahmed Helmy and Hend Sabry in a story combining adventure, dark comedy and thriller elements.
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John Turturro will present Noah Segan’s The Only Living Pickpocket in New York, playing an aging pickpocket struggling to adapt to a changing world. Laïla Marrakchi will attend the screening of La más dulce, which follows the daily lives of seasonal workers in Spain. The film has been selected to represent Morocco in the race for the 2027 Academy Award for Best International Feature Film.
James Gray will present Paper Tiger, a film that blends thriller and family drama. In Artificial, Luca Guadagnino turns his attention to OpenAI and the governance crisis that shook the company in 2023. Andrew Garfield plays co-founder Sam Altman.
Horizons: 21 films from around the world
The Horizons section will feature 21 films, including several titles that have received recognition at Cannes and Venice. The lineup includes new works by Ryūsuke Hamaguchi, Cristian Mungiu, Paweł Pawlikowski, Hirokazu Kore-eda and Nanni Moretti.
Arab cinema will be represented by Safe Exit, an Egyptian psychological thriller by Mohammed Hammad; The Station, a dystopian film by Sara Ishaq set in Yemen; and Citizen Osama, Ahmed Hassouna’s documentary about Gaza.
Filmed in Morocco, Les Roses de Marrakech, by Ginevra Elkann, stars Fanny Ardant and Nisrin Erradi in a story of female solidarity. The section will also include Glaxo, The Burning Giants, A Bit of Light and Look Back, Hirokazu Kore-eda’s adaptation of the manga by Tatsuki Fujimoto.
African cinema will be represented by Dao, directed by Alain Gomis; Clarissa, by Arie and Chuko Esiri; and The Smell of Apples, by John Trengove.
Several filmmakers and actors will accompany their films in Marrakech. Andrew Haigh will present A Long Winter, while Gustave Kervern and Suzanne Lindon will attend the screening of Voilà, c’est fini. Jasmine Trinca will be there for Les Cœurs affamés, by Nanni Moretti.
The 11th Continent: 13 films exploring new cinematic forms
The 11th Continent section will feature 13 films, focusing on unconventional storytelling and distinctive cinematic approaches. Its lineup includes fiction films by Danielle Arbid, Sompot Chidgasornpongse and Radu Jude, alongside documentaries such as Edward Said: Between Worlds and Bedeau, camp de passage, which will have its world premiere.
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Contemporary works such as Al Baraneya, Une disparition and Variations on a Theme will share the program with restored classics, including Nahla, by Farouk Beloufa, and Tilaï, by Idrissa Ouedraogo.
Moroccan cinema and films for younger audiences
The Moroccan Cinema Panorama will bring together six fiction and documentary films, including three world premieres. Bardi, directed by Tala Hadid, will open the section, which will also feature Cagoules, by Mohamed Mouftakir. Across the festival’s different sections, 11 Moroccan films will be screened, alongside three international productions filmed in Morocco.
The Young Audience and Family section will offer 11 screenings for children, teenagers and their families. Jamel Debbouze will present La Fille dans les nuages, an animated film directed by Philippe Riche. Mohcine Besri will unveil Toutes sauf ma mère in its world premiere, featuring Omar Lotfi and Abdellah Didane, among others.
The 76-film program will also include screenings dedicated to the artists being honored at this year’s festival. The 23rd Marrakech International Film Festival will run from November 20 to 28, 2026, with screenings at the Palais des Congrès, Le Colisée cinema and the Yves Saint Laurent Museum in Marrakech.
