Beyond Casablanca: M. A. Tazi and the Adventure of Moroccan Cinema

In Beyond Casablanca, Kevin Dwyer explores the problems of creativity in the Arab and African world, focusing on Moroccan cinema and one of its key figures, filmmaker M. A. Tazi. Dwyer develops three themes simultaneously: the filmmaker's career and films; filmmaking in postcolonial Morocco; and the relationship between Moroccan cinema, Third World and Arab cinema, and the global film industry. This compelling discussion of Moroccan cinema is founded upon decades of anthropological research in Morocco, most recently on the Moroccan film sector and the global film industry, and exhibits a sensitivity to the cultural, political, social, and economic context of creative activity. The book centers on a series of interviews conducted with Tazi, whose career provides a rich commentary on the world of Moroccan cinema and on Moroccan cinema in the world. The interviews are framed, variously, by presentations of Moroccan history, society, and culture; the role of foreign filmmakers in Morocco; thematic discussions of cinematic issues (such as narrative techniques, the use of symbols, film as an expression of identity, and problems of censorship); and the global context of Third World filmmaking.

In Beyond Casablanca, Kevin Dwyer explores the problems of creativity in
the Arab and African world, focusing on Moroccan cinema and one of its key figures,
filmmaker M. A. Tazi. Dwyer develops three themes simultaneously: the filmmaker's
career and films; filmmaking in postcolonial Morocco; and the relationship between
Moroccan cinema, Third World and Arab cinema, and the global film industry. This
compelling discussion of Moroccan cinema is founded upon decades of anthropological
research in Morocco, most recently on the Moroccan film sector and the global film
industry, and exhibits a sensitivity to the cultural, political, social, and
economic context of creative activity. The book centers on a series of interviews
conducted with Tazi, whose career provides a rich commentary on the world of
Moroccan cinema and on Moroccan cinema in the world. The interviews are framed,
variously, by presentations of Moroccan history, society, and culture; the role of
foreign filmmakers in Morocco; thematic discussions of cinematic issues (such as
narrative techniques, the use of symbols, film as an expression of identity, and
problems of censorship); and the global context of Third World filmmaking.

Cover......Page 1 TOC......Page 8 Acknowledgments......Page 10 Introduction......Page 14 1. The Most Successful Moroccan Film Ever......Page 33 INTERLUDE: Film's Power and Function......Page 70 2. Building the National Cinema, Building a Career......Page 82 INTERLUDE: A First Feature - The Big Trip (1981)......Page 119 3. Huston, Wise, Coppola, Camus.........Page 133 4. Badis (1989)......Page 167 INTERLUDE: Telling a Story - Narrative and Symbols......Page 211 5. The Other Side of the Wind, Almost......Page 224 INTERLUDE: Lalla Hobby - The Film......Page 256 6. Reflections and Projections......Page 275 CONCLUSION: Future Flights of the Bumblebee......Page 315 Chronology......Page 358 Detailed Table of Contents......Page 364 Notes......Page 376 Bibliography......Page 430 Index......Page 436 In Beyond Casablanca, Kevin Dwyer explores the problems of creativity in the Arab and African world, focusing on Moroccan cinema and one of its key figures, filmmaker M. A. Tazi. Dwyer develops three themes simultaneously: the film maker's career and films; film making in postcolonial Morocco; and the relationship between Moroccan cinema, Third World and Arab cinema, and the global film industry. This compelling discussion of Moroccan cinema is founded upon decades of anthropological research in Morocco "In Beyond Casablanca, Kevin Dwyer explores the problems of creativity in the Arab and African world, focusing on Moroccan cinema and one of its key figures, filmmaker M.A. Tazi, Dwyer develops three themes simultaneously, the filmmaker's career and films; filmmaking in post-colonial Morocco; and the relationship between Moroccan cinema, Third World and Arab cinema, and the global film industry."--Jacket Dwyer explores the problems of creativity in the Arab and African world, focusing on Moroccan cinema and one of its key figures, filmmaker M.A. Tazi. The author develops three themes simultaneously: the filmmaker's career and films; filmmaking in postcolonial Morocco; and the relationship between Moroccan cinema, Third World and Arab cinema, and the global film industry