''Zanka Contact'' is a 2020 Moroccan film directed by

Ismael El Iraki Ismael El Maoula El Iraki (born 1983 in Morocco) is a French-Moroccan filmmaker. He is a survivor of the November 2015 attacks on the Bataclan in Paris, which inspired his first feature film, '' Zanka Contact''. Biography El Iraki was born in M ...

. Described as a '' Wild at Heart''-type love story with debts to

Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, writer, producer, and actor. His films are characterized by stylized violence, extended dialogue, profanity, Black comedy, dark humor, Nonlinear narrative, non-lin ...

and

Sergio Leone Sergio Leone (; 3 January 1929 – 30 April 1989) was an Italian film director, producer and screenwriter credited as the pioneer of the Spaghetti Western genre and widely regarded as one of the most influential directors in the history of cin ...

, the film was inspired by El Iraki's emotional journey and recovery after he found himself in the midst of the horrors of the 2015 Bataclan attacks in Paris. Following a screening at the

77th Venice International Film Festival The 77th annual Venice International Film Festival was held from 2 to 12 September 2020, albeit in a "more restrained format" due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Australian actress Cate Blanchett was appointed as the President of the Jury. '' The Ties ...

where the film's lead actress, Moroccan singer Khansa Batma, won the Venice

Orizzonti '' Orizzonti'' is a section of the Venice Film Festival's official selection. It runs as a parallel section to the main competition for the Golden Lion The Golden Lion ( it, Leone d'oro) is the highest prize given to a film at the Venice Film ...

Award for Best Actress, the film went on to be selected for over thirty international festivals and won several awards through its festival run 2020 to 2022. Among them, ''Zanka Contact'' was awarded the Golden Tutankhamun Award for best feature film at the

Luxor African Film Festival The Luxor African Film Festival (LAFF) is an annual film festival for African cinema in Luxor, Egypt. In October 2019 the Malmö Arab Film Festival Malmö Arab Film Festival (MAFF) is an Arab film festival based in Malmö, Sweden. MAFF is widel ...

Synopsis

Has-been rockstar Larsen Snake returns to his native Casablanca where he meets Rajae, a street girl with a golden voice. The two madly fall in love, but their passion is quickly overtaken by their past, and the wild couple takes to the desert to escape their demons.

Release

El Iraki kept many of the cast and crew from his shorts (including actors

Said Bey Said Bey is a Moroccan actor and humorist. Filmography * ''Jesus'' (1999) * ''The Man Who Sold the World'' (2009)' * ''Femmes en miroires'' (2011)' * '' Road To Kabul'' (2011) * Son of God (2014) * ''Urgent Urgent may refer to: * Urgent (A ...

and

Mourad Zaoui Mourad Zaoui (; born 23 April 1980) is a Moroccan actor. Biography Mourad Zaoui was born in the Aïn Sebaâ district of Casablanca, Morocco, on 23 April 1980. He is the oldest of two sons born to Mostapha and Khadija Zaoui. After earning his ...

) on his first feature Zanka Contact, also known under the French release title Burning Casablanca. The movie premiered in 2020 in the official selection of the

. The lead actress Khansa Batma won the Lion for Best Actress Orizzonti section. Despite being premiered in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, the movie still obtained many selections in international festivals around the world :

Busan International film festival The Busan International Film Festival (BIFF, previously Pusan International Film Festival, PIFF), held annually in Haeundae-gu, Busan (''also'' Pusan), South Korea, is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia. The first festi ...

, São Paulo International Film Festival or Mostra,

Karlovy Vary International Film festival The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival ( cs, Mezinárodní filmový festival Karlovy Vary) is a film festival held annually in July in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic. The Karlovy Vary Festival is one of the oldest in the world and has become ...

and many more. Shot on

35mm film 35 mm may refer to: * 135 film, a type of still photography format commonly referred to as 35 mm film * 35 mm movie film, a type of motion picture film stock * 35MM 35 mm may refer to: * 135 film, a type of still photography format ...

in a

CinemaScope CinemaScope is an anamorphic lens series used, from 1953 to 1967, and less often later, for shooting widescreen films that, crucially, could be screened in theatres using existing equipment, albeit with a lens adapter. Its creation in 1953 by ...

Anamorphic Anamorphic format is the cinematography technique of shooting a widescreen picture on standard 35 mm film or other visual recording media with a non-widescreen native aspect ratio. It also refers to the projection format in which a distorted ...

, Zanka Contact went on to win several international award

among which the Best Film Awar

at the

. Zanka Contact was theatrically released in France on November 3, 2021 under the changed title Burning Casablanca. Director explained that the change was decided with the French distributor during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

to avoid sounding like the french phrase "cas contact", which refers to someone who had close contact with a Covid-19 case. The film beneficiated from a wave of support from film critics in Franc

and did well theatrically for a post-COVID release. The Moroccan release took place on December 1, 2021 to critic and commercial acclaim. 10 months later in September 2022, Zanka Contact participated in the Tangier National Film Festival and won Best Film and Best Actress in a Supporting Role for actress Fatima Attif.

Cast

* Khansa Batma *

Ahmed Hammoud Ahmed Hammoud (born 12 July 1991) is a Morocco, Moroccan actor. He is best known for the roles in the films ''13 Hours'', ''Mimosas'' and ''Zanka Contact''. Career He started acting career with several commercial advertisements. Then in 2016, he ...

Festivals and awards

(Italy): Best Actress (Khansa Batma) Orrizonti section * CINEMED Montpellier Mediterranean Film Festival (France): Jury Award *

London international film festival The BFI London Film Festival is an annual film festival founded in 1957 and held in the United Kingdom, running for two weeks in October with co-operation from the British Film Institute. It screens more than 300 films, documentaries and shor ...

(U.K) *

(Czek Republic) / canceled (COVID-19) *

Geneva International Film Festival The Geneva International Film Festival (GIFF) (french: link=no, Festival international du film de Genève) is an annual film festival founded in 1995. The festival, previously called the Geneva International Film Festival Tous Ecrans, was renamed ...

(Switzerland)/ canceled (COVID-19) *

(Egypt) : Best Film * Sarlat Film Festival (France)/ canceled (COVID-19) * Soundscreen International Film Festival (Italy): Best Music * Linea d’Ombra Festival (Italy)/ canceled (COVID-19) * Sao Paulo International Film Festival (Brazil) *

Busan International Film Festival The Busan International Film Festival (BIFF, previously Pusan International Film Festival, PIFF), held annually in Haeundae-gu, Busan (''also'' Pusan), South Korea, is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia. The first festi ...

(South Korea) * Annonay International First Film Festival ( France) : Best Film * Music & Cinema Marseille : Best Director (Ismael El Iraki) *

Shanghai International Film Festival The Shanghai International Film Festival (, French: ''Festival international du film de Shanghai''), abbreviated SIFF, is one of the largest film festivals in East Asia. "China's biggest film festival" according to the Hollywood Reporter. Nex ...

(China) *

Durban International Film Festival The Durban International Film Festival (DIFF) is an annual film festival that takes place in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal province, South Africa. Founded in 1979 by Teddy Sarkin and Ros Sarkin, it is the oldest and largest film festival in Africa an ...

(South Africa) * Gabes International Film Festival (Tunisia) * Tetuan International Film Festival (Morocco) * Tangier National Film Festival (Morocco): Best Film / Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Fatima Attif)

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, 12668892 2020 films