Cinema: Simone Bitton, In memory of Hajj Edmond

The documentaries signed by Simone Bitton almost always combine archives and personal stories. It is this approach that is favored in “The 1001 days of Hajj Edmond”. This posthumous tribute to the Moroccan writer Edmond Amran Elmaleh adopts an intimate tone and invites us to (re)discover a man of principles and conviction, straight in his “babouches” until his last breath. “He would have been scandalized by the current situation in Palestine, and everything that is happening in Gaza,” insists Simone Bitton during the screening of the documentary, in world premiere at the Marrakech International Film Festival.

The Franco-Moroccan director invites us to delve into the soul of a scholar, “a patriot, a man of conviction, loving justice and dialogue”, as she tells us. The film celebrates the memory of this essential figure of Moroccan culture, who has not been recognized for his true value, but whose fights for cultural diversity, justice and dialogue are more relevant than ever. “In this film, where I speak in the first person, I say that I discovered Edmond when I was a student in , through his first book, “Parcours immobile”. The book cover featured a design that closely resembles the tar on Amazigh pottery. The illustration, the Jewish name very common in Morocco, caught my eye and I bought the book. I then had the opportunity to meet him personally thanks to Leïla Shahid who brought me to his home to introduce him to me… Since then, we have never really left each other, being both Moroccan, attached to the Palestinian cause, while having very strong Jewish ties, which we not only do not deny, but which we embrace. We say the real Jews are us and not those who supposedly kill in our name. We are the people of the book, of wisdom, of writing, of justice, not of war and the arms trade,” she insists.

Edmond Amran El Maleh lived the last years of his life surrounded by friends.

Hajj Edmond told by his

The documentary calls on 17 protagonists who knew and worked with “Hajj Edmond”, a nickname given to him by those close to him. “Edmond was very sociable. He easily created strong and sincere friendships everywhere. Although he left more than ten years ago, many of his friends are still in this world, and wanted to participate in the documentary, because everyone loved Edmond and had things to tell. My regret is having filmed a lot of them without being able to integrate them into the documentary…”explains the director. Born in Safi in 1917, and died in Rabat in 2010, at a very advanced age, Edmond Amran Elmaleh lived a thousand and one lives. Communist activist engaged in the fight for the independence of Morocco, witness to a century marked by the exile of Moroccan Jews and the exodus of Palestinians, professor of philosophy in Morocco and then in Paris, Edmond Amran Elmaleh embodied a vibrant memory , woven with stories and imbued with its own history.

Known for her striking works such as The Wall (2004) or Rachel (2009), Simone Bitton continues to take a lucid and sensitive look at questions of identity and memory. The documentary dedicated to Edmond Amran Elmaleh questions, with finesse not devoid of emotion, the links between memory and transmission. It is in line with this artistic requirement that the filmmaker, with a rich and complex identity, has made her own.

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