Ales

Today, Ales is ready. She returns to the terrace she once lived on with her mother, to finally free herself from the traumatic memory of this human being who stole her innocence forever. If her silence has never allowed her to exorcise this wound, her inner strength has guided her to this day of redemption and will allow her to regain peace.

  • Faiçal Ben
    Director
    Alter Ego
  • Faiçal Ben
    Writer
    Alter Ego
  • Carole Guilloux
    Producer
  • Faiçal Benaghrou
    Producer
    Alter Ego
  • INASS ESSABAR
    Key Cast
    "Ales young"
  • ESTHER SENSO
    Key Cast
    "Ales adult"
  • HANANE MASSAOUDI
    Key Cast
    "The mother of Ales young"
  • DABCHA
    Key Cast
    "The man"
  • FATIMA KAMOUNI
    Key Cast
    "The mother of Ales adult"
  • Ali Benjelloun
    Director of Photography
    Le Cri de l’âme, C'est eux les Chiens, La Lune Rouge
  • Singhkeo Panya
    Music Composer
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Drama
  • Runtime:
    15 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    February 15, 2018
  • Production Budget:
    30,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Morocco
  • Country of Filming:
    Morocco
  • Language:
    Arabic
  • Shooting Format:
    4K
  • Aspect Ratio:
    CinemaScope
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • 19th National Film Festival of Morocco
    Tangier
    Morocco
    March 11, 2018
    Moroccan Premiere
    Special Mention Prize
  • 7th North African Film Festival
    Oujda
    Morocco
    June 26, 2018
    North African Premiere
    Special Mention Prize
  • Social World Film Festival
    Naples
    Italy
    August 3, 2018
    European Premiere
    Official Selection / Nominated for the awards for Best Short Film, Grand Jury Prize of Quality
  • 7th Delhi International Film Festival
    Delhi
    India
    October 13, 2018
    Asian Premiere
    Best Director Prize
  • 29th Fameck Arab Film Festival
    Fameck
    France
    October 11, 2018
    French Premiere
    Special Mention Prize
  • 5th Kinshasa International Cinéma Festival (FICKIN)
    Kinshasa
    Congo, the Democratic Republic of the
    October 15, 2018
    Official Selection
  • Short To The Point

    Romania
    September 30, 2018
    Eastern Europe
    Finalist
  • Gorée Island Cinema Festival
    Dakar
    Senegal
    October 27, 2018
    Official Selection
  • 5th Digital Cinema Festival
    Cotonou
    Benin
    December 8, 2018
    Official Selection
  • To Cinema for Human Rights - Amnesty International Festival

    France
    Official Selection
  • Africa International Film Festival - AFRIFF
    Lagos
    Nigeria
    November 13, 2018
    Official Selection
  • Festival de Cine y Derechos Humanos de Madrid
    Madrid
    Spain
    December 7, 2018
    Best Short Film Prize
  • Mediterranean Film Festival Cannes
    Cannes
    France
    December 3, 2018
    Official Selection
  • 29th Istanbul International Short Film Festival
    Istanbul
    Turkey
    December 16, 2018
    Official Selection
  • Cinema Days Festival of Fes
    Fes
    Morocco
    December 27, 2018
    Grand Prix
  • Lift Off Global Network Film Festival 2018
    Paris
    France
    Official Selection
  • Cap Spartel Film Festival
    Tangier
    Morocco
    April 28, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Dadasaheb Phalke International Film Festival
    Mumbai
    India
    February 20, 2019
    Official Selection
  • World of Woman Film Fair
    Dubai
    United Arab Emirates
    March 6, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Beirut International Women Film Festival
    Beirut
    Lebanon
    March 10, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Luxor African Film Festival
    Luxor
    Egypt
    April 18, 2019
    Best Artistic Achievement
  • International Children's Rights Film Festival
    Bursa
    Turkey
    April 12, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Nepal Human Rights Film Festival
    Kathmandu
    Nepal
    April 4, 2019
    Official Selection
  • IPAS Film Festival
    Athens
    Greece
    April 11, 2019
    Audience Award
  • Afrika FilmFestival
    Leuven
    Belgium
    April 27, 2019
    YAFMA Award
  • Arab Film Festival
    Rotterdam
    Netherlands
    March 28, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Short Film Encounters of Madagascar
    Antananarivo
    Madagascar
    April 26, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Benguerir Film Festival
    Benguerir
    Morocco
    Official Selection
  • Kenitra Film Festival
    Kenitra
    Morocco
    Grand Prix
  • Fes Film Festival
    Fes
    Morocco
    Official Selection
  • Wairoa Māori Film Festival
    Wairoa
    New Zealand
    Official Selection
  • Durban International Film Festival
    Durban
    South Africa
    Official Selection
Distribution Information
  • FilmsBeldi Production
    Country: Worldwide
Director Biography - Faiçal Ben

After 10 years of engagement with the army, Faiçal Ben is now part of this young generation of filmmakers that can be counted on. Self-taught, he has finally found in the 7th Art what he has been seeking for so long, his freedom of expression and creation.
Faiçal has started a self-taught training to create a cinematographic background through readings, film screenings, field work with filmmakers sharing their know-how, several master-classes in festivals, and scriptwriting residencies.
Having started his career as an editor, then assistant director on several institutional films, short films and web series, Faiçal also directed several videos of cultural and artistic events. In parallel, he started scriptwriting for his own projects of short and feature films, and for television series.
Following two experimental films (Décalage, 2015 and Confusion, 2016) and a first short fiction film (Alter Ego, 2016), Ales is his second short film.
In post-production of his third short film (Femme à Clefs, 2018), he now devotes himself to writing a first feature film.

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Director Statement

"I will never stop fighting to be able to make films and reach my ambitions. Between the cinema and I is a true love story that will never end."
"I don't like to explain everything in my films, but I use many metaphors and signs speaking for themselves."