Cascade Festival of African Films 2020: "Adam" by Maryam Touzani (Morocco)

Cascade Festival of African Films 2020 Adam by Maryam Touzani

(Morocco) 2019, 98 min
Featuring Women Filmmakers Week

Synopsis
In the Medina of Casablanca, Alba, widow and mother of eight-year old Warda runs a modest local bakery from her home. When Samia, young, homeless, unmarried and pregnant, knocks on their door, Abla makes a life-changing decision. In this feature directorial debut, Maryam Touzani has created a moving portrait of familial love and support between women. (Source: adapted from Cascade Festival of African Films)

Bio

Maryam Touzani born in Morocco, grew up in Tangier and did her university studies in London. Passionate about writing, she returned to Morocco after her studies and worked as a journalist, specializing in cinema. She very quickly felt the need to express herself through her own films. In 2011, she directed her first cinematic work, the short film Quand ils dorment. The documentary Sous Ma Vieille Peau, directed in 2014 relates the lives of four elder Moroccan prostitutes: Some still practice, occasionally, bartering their worn out bodies for a mere pittance. Their pasts are as different as their lives and their personalities. But they all share a burning desire for freedom, in the midst of the conservative Muslim environment in which they live. In 2015 she directed her second short film, Aya va à la plage which focuses on the theme of the exploitation of young children as servants. In 2019, her first feature film Adam was selected for the Cannes festival, in the Un Certain Regard section. (Source: adapted from Africine.org)