The 21st International Marrakech Film Festival concluded in style on December 7, 2024, with a glittering closing ceremony that honored the best in global cinema. The festival’s top prize, the Étoile d’Or, was awarded to Happy Holidays, a powerful Palestinian drama directed by Scandar Copti. Set in Haifa, the film uses the aftermath of a minor car accident to explore societal divisions, leaving a lasting impression on the jury and audience alike.
Wafaa Aoun and Manar Shehab shared the Best Actress award for their performances in Happy Holidays, while the Jury Prize was split between two standout films: Argentina’s The Cottage and Somalia’s The Village Next to Paradise.
Meanwhile, Damian Kocur was celebrated for Best Director for his work on Under the Volcano (Poland), a gripping narrative of human resilience. The film also earned Roman Lutskyi the Best Actor award for his striking portrayal of the protagonist.
Acclaimed Italian filmmaker and Jury President Luca Guadagnino took the stage during the ceremony to reflect on the festival’s cultural impact, expressing deep gratitude to King Mohammed VI and Prince Moulay Rachid, President of the Marrakech International Film Festival Foundation.
Guadagnino praised Marrakech as “undeniably the cinema capital of December,” llauding the festival for uniting a diverse range of cinematic legends, such as Abderrahmane Sissako, David Cronenberg, Tim Burton, Sean Penn, François Ozon, Alfonso Cuarón, Jeff Nichols, and Todd Haynes, “all driven by an unrelenting passion to tell stories and explore what makes us human,” Guadagnino remarked.
The festival’s vibrant closing ceremony, attended by filmmakers, actors, and cinephiles from across the globe, underscored the festival’s reputation as a major cultural event in the festival circuit.
As the lights dimmed on this year’s edition, the Marrakech International Film Festival once again reaffirmed its place as a beacon of global cinema, celebrating the art and emotion of filmmaking.
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