Cinema as a cultural matrix can be a life-giving crucible of Morocco’s historical heritage. Today, this powerful tool that can mark the story of Morocco in this universe where the Western imagination predominates is, for the time being, recorded as absent subscribers
Hollywood, Disney, Marvel… The ambassadors of American cultural diplomacy are present in almost every home in the world, distilling the American dream and America first under the guise of distraction and leisure. With the emergence of platforms such as Netflix, Amazon, Apple TV, American films and series are rising to an enormous dimension. Millions of people around the world are glued to their screens every evening, waiting for the next series or the next film from the great American film industry. For the record, let us recall that modern art is a Western invention that took on its full dimension in the 19th century. Many sociologists have studied and analyzed modern art, but the most significant contributions come from Pierre Bourdieu. He particularly focused on the evolution of the artistic field, with an emphasis on the end of the 20th century. Although he did not devote specific works to cinema, his scattered reflections offer essential perspectives for understanding the historical and sociological evolution of cinema as the seventh art. Thus, with Pierre Bourdieu, we question the dynamics of consecration and recognition that have allowed cinema to be granted its status as the seventh art. Moreover, it becomes legitimate to question the institutionalization of content by asking the following questions: who and what ideology does this institutionalization serve?
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In the West, in the aftermath of the two great wars, the world of cinema underwent profound structural changes. We witnessed the birth of the narrative of the victors and the new world order that took place in cinematographic consumption. Cinema served as a privileged vehicle for the ideology of Western hegemony. It was used to build cultural models and propagate visions that favored and reinforced, for example, American soft power. Hollywood cinema, for example, removed borders, penetrating cultures, becoming the messenger of American doctrine. Thus, in this era of globalization of the image and cultural mimicry, do we not have the right to question the place of national cinema? Before answering this question in this survey, it should be noted that countries such as India with Bollywood or Nigeria with Nollywood have, in recent years, taken this issue very seriously. Nigerian series are trying to give the voice of the continent, with difficulty, on Netflix.
Morocco, an open-air museum
Morocco, this beautiful country with a thousand-year-old civilization, is full of a real historical heritage that can be the support of the Moroccan cinematographic story. The pirates and corsairs from Salé who made the maritime glory of Morocco between the 15th and 19th centuries, or Hadda Al Ghaîtia from Safi, whose poetry marked Morocco, Abu Abd al-Lah Muhammad ibn Abd al-Lah al-Lawati al-Tangi ibn Batutah… so many characters highlighted in the book by the author Rachid Boufous (“Small and large stories of Morocco”) who have marked history and who can be immortalized by the magic of the camera. “The historical film is a less widespread cinematographic genre, and this for budgetary and aesthetic reasons. But this does not prevent us from considering history as a subtext and as a backstory for several films. Let’s not forget that this year, the historical film benefited from the advance on receipts: the film ’18 days’ and ‘Tajenette’. Perhaps the lack is also due to a structural problem which is dramaturgical writing and the lack of professional screenwriters,” explains Ezzaher Abderrazak, former director of the Higher Institute of Audiovisual and Cinema Professions, university professor.
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Let us recall that the first Moroccan cinematographic creations began with “Life is a fight” (1968) by Mohamed Ben-Abdelouahed Tazi, “The cursed son” by Mohamed Asfour (1967), “No luck” by Moumen Smihi (1971), “A shadow among others” by Abdelkader Lagtaâ (1969), “Of flesh and steel” by Mohamed Afifi (1959), “Tarfaya or the march of a poet” by Ahmed Bouanani (1966). Even if actions were undertaken with the creation of the Moroccan Cinematographic Center in the 60s, today the record of cinema is not brilliant: no Moroccan film shines on the international scene. In 2022, even though the cinema sector in Morocco experienced an interesting dynamic, both culturally and economically, Moroccan film productions generated notable revenues of 27.56 million dirhams. However, despite this economic success, it appears that Moroccan films captured only 36.19% of total cinema attendance, according to the latest available report from the Moroccan Cinematographic Center (CCM), suggesting that national cinema still needs to conquer a larger share of the local market. Indeed, the Moroccan public seems to trust national film production less than that of Hollywood, Bollywood, Egypt, Turkey or even distant South Korea. In addition, the number of admissions did not exceed 1.5 million over the entire year, which represents less than 4% of the population. In terms of cinemas, Morocco now has only 27 cinemas, a decrease of 18% compared to 2014. A decline that is due both to the desertion of the public and to the availability of films on media such as DVDs, the Internet, Netflix, with the final effect of a drop in box office receipts. “In terms of quantity, Moroccan films are ranked among the top African and Arab countries, around 30 films per year, plus double that in short films and documentaries. Cinemas and distribution are the Achilles heel of Moroccan cinema… Lack of revenue means a handicap in terms of payment of advances, annual deficits,” qualifies Ezzaher Abderrazak.
Let us also recall that in the last 60 years, Morocco has only produced 320 films. According to one of our sources, the subsidies granted to films are low, and the national cinema cannot produce a film on the history of Morocco with a budget of 5 million dirhams.
Cinema, a cultural diplomacy issue
“Morocco is a country that aspires to economic emergence. Its efforts have positioned it on this path since the beginning of the 3rd millennium. It is obvious that a country’s position on the international scene is a function of its economic power, knowing that this position owes much to its reputation and the strength of its culture,” explains an IRES note on the subject. According to Jean-Claude Thoenig, a public policy is “an action program specific to one or more public or governmental authorities.” Public policies are therefore tools and means implemented by public authorities to achieve objectives in a vast field of intervention. For example, economic policy, urban policy, youth policy, security policy, etc. In the same vein, cultural diplomacy is the responsibility of public policy, and given its transversal nature, it must involve several ministerial departments with an openness to other regional and non-governmental actors.
According to the experts, “we note the absence of a doctrine of cultural diplomacy.” How should Morocco be represented abroad? What culture should be exported? For what purpose should trips of intellectuals and artists be organized and promoted abroad as well as the circulation of their works? Where should actions be concentrated: where economic interests are predominant or where political tensions do not allow for exchanges other than cultural ones?
As the driving force behind this diplomacy, Moroccan cinema has nevertheless managed to secure second place in Africa in terms of the number of films produced annually, thanks to the aid fund established with the Moroccan Cinematographic Center and a talented generation of actors and directors. Like theater, Moroccan cinema is making its mark on the Arab scene but has not yet managed to do the same in Europe. The presence on our territory of several festivals, notably the Marrakech festival, can participate in the international promotion of our films, the study maintains.
