Fez Film Festival Aims to Rejuvenate Cinema

A scene from François Truffaut's 1976 film L'Argent de Poche

Held in the nostalgic Art Deco surrounds of Cinema Rex, this weekend's French Film Festival, Cinema et Enfance ("Cinema & Childhood") offers more than just screenings - it's also an event to encourage cinema in Fez.

The Cinema et Enfance festival, organised by the Institut Français Fes, in partnership with the Association Fes Soleil, is an opportunity to revisit some favorite films, as well as others from different backgrounds that may have never been seen. Films to be screened are from Morocco, France, Iran and Japan.

One of the highlights will be François Truffaut's L'Argent de Poche ("Pocket Money"), screening this Saturday at 7.30 PM. It is a comedy with a serious message, based on the daily lives of young children in Thiers, France. It portrays the difficulties and responsibilities faced by children, such as the ongoing story of a boy's experience of an abusive home. Scenes include a baby and a cat perilously playing on an open windowsill, a girl causing confusion with a bullhorn, a double date at the movie theater, a kid telling a dirty joke, and a botched haircut, as well as many scenes about school life. One of Truffaut's most popular films, it gives a message of resilience in the face of injustice.

Meetings, debates and reflections around these films will hopefully take the experience beyond mere projection.

Festival Cinema et Enfance is on Friday February 24 and Saturday February 25 at 5 PM and 7.30 PM at Cinema Rex in the Ville Nouvelle. Cost - students and members 10 dhs; non-members 20 dhs.

See the full program for Cinema et Enfance HERE.



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