Sophia Alaoui, Casablanca-born Director Selected by the Academy of Oscars to compete for the Oscar for best short film 2021.
Sophia Alaoui, the Casablanca-born director’s has been selected by the Academy of Oscars to compete for the Oscar for best short film 2021. Aloui’s Amazigh lingual film, “Qu’importe si Les betes meurent” won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival and the was nominated in the category of best short film at the Césars 2021.
“Qu’importe si Les betes meurent” was only Moroccan film to be featured in the international competition of the Sundance Film Festival (January-February 2020), the Clermont Ferrand International Short Film Festival (February 2020), the National Festival of Film in Tangier (February-March 2020), the Sao Paolo International Short Film Festival (August 2020), and at the Namur International Francophone Film Festival (October 2020). Several of Alaoui’s works were selected for international prizes at several film festivals, acknowledging the quality of this young director’s talent.
“Qu’importe si Les betes meurent,” produced by Jiango Films, was screened in both France and Morocco in the Amazigh (Berber) language in 2021. The a 23-minute-long, film, in Amazigh, tells story of Abdellah, a young shepherd and his father, who witness the death of their animals in the high Atlas Mountains. Abdellah must go to a nearby village for supplies and food yet realizes that it has been deserted because of a mysterious event. The Moroccan short film offers captivating questions surrounding the beliefs, traditions, and ideas that we often take for granted.
French-Moroccan director Sophia Alaoui spent her childhood between Casablanca, Morocco, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. She has directed documentary and fiction short films that have been broadcast on France 3, TV5, OCS. Alaoui’s latest documentary, “Les Vagues ou rien” received wide critical acclaim in both Morocco and France. She is also the founder of the Moroccan production company Jiango Films and is currently writing her first feature and TV series to be produced by Barney Production.
Alaoui’s Oscar-nominated film “Qu’importe si Les betes meurent” Won Jury Prize at the Sundance Festival
Alaoui’s Oscar-nominated short film has received numerous positive reviews, winning several prizes. The film notably won the much-coveted Jury Prize at the Sundance Festival in 2020. It also won France’s national film competition at the Champs-Elisees Film Festival. Most recently, the Moroccan short film was screened at the Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival and was nominated within the class of finest quick movie for the Cesar 2021.