Souheil Ben-Barka (born 25 December 1942) is a Moroccan

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

and

film producer A film producer is a person who oversees film production. Either employed by a production company or working independently, producers plan and coordinate various aspects of film production, such as selecting the script, coordinating writing, di ...

. He directed seven films between 1974 and 2002. His 1975 film ''

La guerre du pétrole n'aura pas lieu ''La guerre du pétrole n'aura pas lieu'' is a 1975 Moroccan drama film directed by Souheil Ben-Barka. It was entered into the 9th Moscow International Film Festival. Plot The film takes place in a fictive Arab country that could be Morocco. In ...

'' was entered into the

9th Moscow International Film Festival The 9th Moscow International Film Festival was held from 10 to 23 July 1975. The Golden Prizes were awarded to the Polish film '' The Promised Land'' directed by Andrzej Wajda, the Soviet-Japanese film ''Dersu Uzala'' directed by Akira Kurosawa a ...

. His 1983 film '' Amok'' won the Golden Prize at the

13th Moscow International Film Festival The 13th Moscow International Film Festival was held from 7 to 21 July 1983. The Golden Prizes were awarded to the Moroccan-Guinea-Senegalese film '' Amok'' directed by Souheil Ben-Barka, the Nicaraguan-Cuban-Mexican-Costa Rican film ''Alsino and ...

. In 1987 he was a member of the jury at the

15th Moscow International Film Festival The 15th Moscow International Film Festival was held from 6 to 17 July 1987. The Golden Prize was awarded to the Italian film ''Intervista'' directed by Federico Fellini. Jury * Robert De Niro (United States – President of the Jury) * Tengiz ...

Biography

He was born in 1942 in

Timbuktu Timbuktu ( ; french: Tombouctou; Koyra Chiini: ); tmh, label=Tuareg, script=Tfng, ⵜⵏⴱⴾⵜ, Tin Buqt a city in Mali, situated north of the Niger River. The town is the capital of the Tombouctou Region, one of the eight administrativ ...

Mali Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Mali ...

. His father was a rich Moroccan merchant, and his mother was of Lebanese origin, her mother was of Armenian descent. He left Timbuktu at the age of 16. He spent a few years in

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...

before going to finish his higher education at

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. One day in 1962, he happened to attend a film shooting on the street, the Italian filmmaker

Federico Fellini Federico Fellini (; 20 January 1920 – 31 October 1993) was an Italian film director and screenwriter known for his distinctive style, which blends fantasy and baroque images with earthiness. He is recognized as one of the greatest and most i ...

was directing ''

8½ ' (Italian title: , ) is a 1963 surrealist comedy-drama film directed and co-written (with Tullio Pinelli, Ennio Flaiano and Brunello Rondi) by Italian filmmaker Federico Fellini. The metafictional narrative centers on Guido Anselmi, played by Ma ...

''. After this he decided to devote himself to the filmmaking. He studied sociology and got a Bachelor's degree, then he studied at the

Centro sperimentale di cinematografia The Centro sperimentale di cinematografia (Experimental Film Centre or Italian National film school) was established in 1935 in Italy and aims to promote the art and technique of cinematography and film. The centre is the oldest film school in ...

in Rome.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ben-Barka, Souheil 1942 births Living people Moroccan film directors Moroccan screenwriters Moroccan film producers People from Timbuktu Moroccan people of Lebanese descent