Biografia
Nabil Ayouch works and lives in Casablanca and is a member of the Academy of Motion Pictures, the Académie des Césars and the Arab Film Academy. Nabil Ayouch is a director, writer, producer and is the founder of Ali n' Production, the main film and TV shows production company in Morocco.
In 1997, Nabil Ayouch directed his first feature film, Mektoub (1997) which, like Ali Zaoua: Prince of the Streets (2000) represented Morocco at the Oscars. Next came Une minute de soleil en moins (2002) and Whatever Lola Wants (2007), produced by Pathé.
After directing several live shows such as the opening of Morocco Time in France at the Château de Versailles in 1999, he conceived and staged the closing show of the World Economic Forum in Davos later in 2009.
In 2011, he directed his first feature-length documentary, My Land (2011) which he shot in the Middle East. In 2012, he made Horses of God (2012). The film, based on the May 16, 2003, bombings in Casablanca, was selected in the official selection - Un Certain Regard, at the Cannes Film Festival and received the François Chalais Award. It represented Morocco at the Oscars and won 26 international awards.
In May 2015, his next film Much Loved (2015) was selected at the Cannes Film Festival, at the Directors' Fortnight. In September, it won the Valois d'Or and the Valois for Best Actress at Angoulême. Banned in Morocco, "Much Loved" was released in about twenty countries and was acquired by Netflix for the US and several other countries. It collected 12 international awards and reached 280,000 admissions in France, the biggest success ever for a Moroccan film.
In 2016, Nabil Ayouch made Razzia (2017). The film, which had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2017, won a dozen international awards. It was widely sold around the world, including in the US where it was distributed by Amazon.
In 2019, Nabil Ayouch produced the film Adam (2019), first feature film by Maryam Touzani, which had its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival (Un Certain Regard). The film, sold in 20 countries, won 23 awards and was both a public and critical success.
In 2021, Nabil Ayouch directed Casablanca Beats (2021). The film, which deals with the youth of the suburbs of Casablanca and with Hip Hop as a means of expression, was presented in world premiere in the official competition of the Cannes Film Festival 2021, the first time for a Moroccan film.
In 2023, he produced The Blue Caftan (2022) by Maryam Touzani. Selected at the Cannes Film Festival - Un Certain Regard, it won the FRIPESCI Prize. The film, representing Morocco at the Oscars, was shortlisted among the 15 best foreign films, the first time ever for Morocco. The film won more than 50 awards around the world. Sold in about thirty territories, it recorded more than 500,000 international admissions, a record for a Moroccan film.
In 2024, Nabil Ayouch will release Everybody Loves Touda (2024) his next film.
Beyond his films, Nabil Ayouch contributes, through Ali n' Productions, which he created in 1999, to energize the Moroccan cinematic landscape by supporting young talents.
Through the creation of the "Film Industry," he produced between 2005 and 2010, 40 genre films, contributing to the creation of a true film industry that would reveal and train talents in all areas of the film industry.
In 2006, he launched the Meda Films Development - with the support of the European Union and the Marrakech International Film Festival Foundation - a structure to accompany producers and screenwriters from the ten countries of the southern Mediterranean shore in the development phase of their films.
Very active in the socio-cultural field, Nabil Ayouch opened in 2014 through the Ali Zaoua Foundation - which he created and presides over - the Cultural Center "Les étoiles de Sidi Moumen," intended for young people in the peripheral neighborhood of Sidi Moumen from which the kamikazes who committed the May 16, 2003, bombings in Casablanca and who inspired "Les Chevaux de Dieu" came. To date, more than 1,000 children and teenagers are enrolled and learn all forms of artistic expression. This was followed by a second Cultural Center in Tangier in 2016, a third in Agadir in 2019, a fourth in Fez in 2020, and finally a fifth center in Marrakech in 2021.
In November 2014, the Louvre Museum paid tribute to Nabil Ayouch by offering him a carte blanche for 3 days during which a large part of his work was shown to the Parisian public.
In 2015, Nabil Ayouch exhibited in Paris and Casablanca a series of photographs that explore this part of society "On the margins" that haunts him and crosses his artistic work. In 2022, he signed a second series of photos "Aporia" which was exhibited in Casablanca.
