10th edition CIFF – 10-14 April 2024

FILMS 2024:  Caribbean Focus | Feature Films | Short Films | Yellow Robin Award Nominees
FILMS 2019: A – E | F – L | M – P | Q – S | T –  Z | Feature Film | Short Film
FILMS 2018: A – E | F – L | M – P | Q – S | T –  Z | Feature Film | Short Film
FILMS 2017: A – E | F – L | M – P | Q – S | T –  Z | Feature Film | Short Film
FILMS 2016: A – E | F – L | M – P | Q – S | T –  Z | Feature Film | Short Film
FILMS 2015: A – E | F – L | M – P | Q – S | T –  Z | Feature Film | Short Film

Sofia (2019 Feature Film)

Meryem Benm’barek | Morocco, France, Qatar | 2018 | color | DCP | 80′ | Arabic, French | e.s.

Sofia, a Moroccan girl, is 20, unmarried and almost a mother – and didn’t even know she was pregnant. The unexpected birth causes major problems in a country where sex outside marriage is a criminal offence. Powerful feature debut that throws a composed yet sharp light on an unreasonable social system.
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How long can you deny a pregnancy, hide it? Not long, as the 20-year-old Moroccan Sofia found out: her waters broke suddenly in the kitchen of her parental home. Her cousin Lena takes her to hospital, but there they face problems; in Morocco, sex outside marriage is an offence. A woman having a baby can only be admitted to hospital when there’s a man to acknowledge fathering the unborn child. In order to get help, save her family’s honor and stay out of jail, Sofia must find the father of her child and marry him as soon as possible.

In a calm, unadorned style, Meryem Benm’Barek slowly reveals the scale of the social forces oppressing Sofia. Class differences, written and unwritten rules, hypocrisy and abuse of power all play a role in this self-assured feature debut, in which Sofia tries to stay on top of the situation, with far-reaching consequences.

Place: The Cinemas 1

Date: 12 April 2019

Time: 13:00

Duration: 1:00

Place: The Cinemas 2

Date: 13 April 2019

Time: 19:45

Duration: 1:00

Year in
Festival

2019

Director

Meryem Benm’barek

Camera

Son Doan

Cast

Maha Alemi
Lubna Azabal
Sarah Perles
Faouzi Bensaïdi
Hamza Khafif
Nadia Niazi
Rawia

Country

Morocco
France
Qatar

Editor

Céline Perréard

Language

Arabic
French

Length

80′

Music

x

Producer

Olivier Delbosc

Production Company

Curiosa Films

Production Design

Samuel Charbonnot

Sales

Be For Films

Scenario

Meryem Benm’Barek

Sound Design

x

Year of Production

2018

Website

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Regisseur en scenarist Meryem BENM’BAREK (1984, Marokko) studeerde Arabische talen in Parijs. Pas later in 2010 volgde ze een regieopleiding in Brussel. Ze regisseerde vijf korte films en kreeg erkenning voor Nor (2013) en het in de Verenigde Staten bekroonde Jennah (2014). Benm’Barek maakt ook sound art-tentoonstellingen voor het Victoria and Albert Museum in Londen. In 2017 ontving ze de Gan Foundation-Prijs en een beurs van het Doha Film Instituut. Haar speelfilmdebuut Sofia (2018) werd bekroond met de Prijs voor Beste Script in Cannes. 
 

Filmography

 

Nor (2013, short), Jennah (2014, short), Sofia (2018)