Cinema
A Thousand and One Hands
ألف يد ويد
Souheil Ben Barka · 1972
Synopsis
In Marrakech, the old dyer Moha and his son Miloud carry bundles of spun wool: thus begins the long labour that leads to the carpet sold abroad, with the toil of the men, women and little girls who weave it. The dyers wear themselves out for rich exporters, until the day Moha is the victim of an industrial accident. Miloud takes his place at the vats and understands that their condition cannot last; according to Maghreb des films, the family then leaves the dyeing works in the hope of a better lot and experiences unemployment.
Context
The author's first fictional feature film, on a screenplay by Ahmed Badry, with cinematography by Girolamo La Rosa, it was produced by Euro-Maghreb Films, the company the filmmaker had founded on his return from Italy. Moroccan actors, Abdou Chaibane and Aïcha El Ghazi, appear in it alongside Mimsy Farmer. It was released in Paris on 23 January 1974; Sogeav, created in 1973 by Izza Genini with Louis Malle and Claude Nedjar, handled its promotion according to Le Courrier de l'Atlas. Africultures says it was distributed in more than a hundred and fifteen countries, and Le Monde says it was censored in Morocco while being praised abroad.
Who it is for
A colour feature film, 71 minutes according to its producer; released on DVD in 2009 in a box set of the Fespaco grand prizes.
Prizes and reception
Étalon de Yennenga at Fespaco in 1973, the first top prize of the festival won by Morocco, and the Georges Sadoul prize in Paris the same year.
Sources for this page 6
The pages consulted to check this page.