Marrakech International Film Festival

Overview

The Marrakech International Film Festival (Festival International du Film de Marrakech, or FIFM) is a competitive film festival held annually in Marrakech, Morocco, under the high patronage of King Mohammed VI. The 22nd edition took place from November 28 to December 6, 2025, screening 13 competition films and a broader program of out-of-competition features, special screenings, and tributes. The festival does not charge an entry fee and accepts submissions via its online entry form with a deadline of July 31.

FIFM's competition is exclusively reserved for first and second feature films (fiction, documentary, or animation) presented as at least a MENA (Middle East and North Africa) premiere, with priority given to world premieres. The festival does not program short films. The top prize is the Etoile d'Or (Golden Star), awarded by an international jury. The 2025 jury was presided by Bong Joon Ho and included Anya Taylor-Joy, Jenna Ortega, Celine Song, Karim Ainouz, Hakim Belabbes, Julia Ducournau, and Payman Maadi.

The festival's industry platform, the Atlas Workshops, runs concurrently and supports emerging Arab and African filmmakers with over EUR 100,000 in development and post-production prizes. The Atlas Workshops is covered in a separate entry.

Key Sections

• Official Competition - 13 first and second feature films competing for the Etoile d'Or, requiring MENA premiere minimum
• Out-of-Competition - international features by upcoming or established filmmakers, requiring Moroccan premiere minimum
• Special Screenings - high-profile premieres and gala presentations
• Tribute Program - retrospectives and career celebrations of major filmmakers
• Panorama - survey of world cinema
• Atlas Workshops - industry program for Arab and African filmmakers (November 30 to December 4, 2025)

Submission Rules and Eligibility

Competition Requirements

To be eligible for the Official Competition, films must meet all of the following:

• Be the first or second feature film (fiction, documentary, or animation) by the director (excluding co-directed films and TV fiction/documentaries)
• Have a minimum duration of 65 minutes
• Have been completed during the twelve months preceding the festival (between November 2024 and November 2025 for the 2025 edition)
• Not have had a public screening in the MENA region in a theater, on television, or on any internet-based VOD platform
• Be available for DCP screening (the festival does not screen 35mm)
• Priority is given to world premieres and films without a French theatrical release

Out-of-Competition Requirements

• Open to international feature films (fiction, documentary, animation, or experimental) by upcoming or established filmmakers
• Must not have had a public screening in Morocco in a theater, on television, or on any internet-based VOD platform
• Priority given to films that did not have a French theatrical release

Submission Process

• Deadline: July 31 (for the 2025 edition, the deadline was July 31, 2025)
• Entry Fee: None. The festival does not charge a submission fee.
• Submission Method: Online entry form via the festival's official submission portal (not FilmFreeway)
• Screening Format: Streaming link for selection. Selected films must be delivered in DCP with English, French, or Arabic subtitles. One set of subtitles is at the applicant's charge.
• Notification: Selection announced by early November. Selected filmmakers notified by email prior to public announcement.
• Contact: selection@festivalmarrakech.org

Major Awards

The 2025 competition awards, decided by the jury presided by Bong Joon Ho:

• Etoile d'Or (Golden Star) - Grand Prize for Best Film, awarded to Promised Sky by Erige Sehiri (France, Tunisia, Qatar)
• Jury Prize - awarded ex aequo to My Father and Qaddafi by Jihan K (US, Libya) and Memory by Vladlena Sandu (France, Netherlands)
• Best Directing - awarded to Oscar Hudson for Straight Circle (UK)
• Best Performance by an Actress - Debora Lobe Naney in Promised Sky
• Best Performance by an Actor - Sope Dirisu in My Father's Shadow (dir. Akinola Davies Jr.)
• Special Mention - Elliot Tittensor and Luke Tittensor for their performances in Straight Circle

What Filmmakers Should Know

For International Filmmakers

Marrakech is one of the few major festivals with no entry fee, which removes a financial barrier to submission. However, the competition is restricted to first and second features only, and the MENA premiere requirement means films that have already screened in the region are ineligible. If your film has had a theatrical release in France, it receives lower priority.

The festival's screening venue is the Palais des Congres in Marrakech. Open-air screenings have historically taken place in Jemaa el-Fna square, a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage site. The festival attracts significant international press and celebrity attendance, generating media coverage that benefits selected films.

For Arab and African Filmmakers

The Atlas Workshops is the primary industry program for filmmakers from the region. It accepts projects in development and films in post-production, with over EUR 100,000 in prize money. The Atlas Station sub-program specifically supports Moroccan producers and directors. See the Atlas Workshops entry for full details.

Practical Considerations

All non-English or non-French language films must be subtitled in English or French for the submission screener. Selected films must provide a DCP with one of three subtitle tracks (English, French, or Arabic) burned in. The festival creates the other two subtitle tracks electronically. The subtitling cost for the required track is borne by the filmmaker.

Festival History

FIFM was founded in 2001 under the patronage of King Mohammed VI of Morocco. The festival was established to position Marrakech and Morocco as a major destination for international cinema, building on the country's growing role as a film production location for international productions.

The festival has maintained consistent royal patronage throughout its history, providing financial stability unusual among international festivals. The competition format has evolved to focus specifically on first and second features, distinguishing FIFM from festivals with broader competition criteria.

The Atlas Workshops, launched in 2018, expanded the festival's role from a screening and awards platform to an active industry development hub for Arab and African cinema. The 2025 edition featured 13 competition films judged by a jury led by Bong Joon Ho, with the Etoile d'Or awarded to Erige Sehiri's Promised Sky.

See Also

For the festival's industry program, see Atlas Workshops. For festival circuit planning and submission strategy, see Film Festival Strategy. For understanding African and Arab cinema markets, see International Film Markets. To calculate the return on investment for festival submissions, use the Festival Entry Fee ROI Calculator. Official rules and regulations are available on the festival website.