Casablanca Beats

CASABLANCA BEATS opened Arab Film Days in 2022—a powerful music film set in a poor suburb of Casablanca, marked by radicalism, unemployment, and a profound lack of hope for the future.

The former rapper Anas starts a hip-hop class at the local youth center, where he teaches his students how hip-hop in the U.S. has served as a central form of expression for marginalized groups in the fight against social injustice. He now inspires the young people to express the challenges they face in their daily lives through dance and music—and to take up the fight for freedom and justice in their own community. Casablanca Beats is a kind of Moroccan cross between 8 Mile and Fame—an energetic and engaging film, spiced with a dazzling soundtrack of local hip-hop.

But do political rap and religion go hand in hand? In a neighborhood deeply shaped by tradition and strict religious norms, the youth face numerous obstacles. The film is based on true events from the community in Sidi Moumen. As in real life, we don’t get clear answers, but the film can be read as a youthful cry for change.

Casablanca Beats premiered in the main competition in Cannes in 2021.

Per Eirik Gilsvik (Archive 2022)

Director

Nabil Ayouch (b. 1969) is a French-Moroccan film and TV director, producer, and writer. Since 1993, he has received significant international recognition for his feature films and short films, including Razzia (2017), Much Loved (2015), and Horses of God (2012)

This film is part of