After 10 years of forced engagement in the Moroccan army, self-taught filmmaker Faiçal Ben now belongs to the young generation of independent Moroccan filmmakers. His work revolves around experimenting with the intersection of surrealism and realism. For him, the experimental medium offers a realm of freedom in his creative process, bridging the gap between video art and the cinematic world.
He began his journey with the production of his first self-produced short fiction film (Alter Ego, 2016). After two residencies in 2015 – La Ruche documentary in Agadir as part of the FIDADOC festival and Tenk in Senegal – he embarked on the filming of his ongoing feature documentary (Cercles). In the meantime, he directed a short documentary (Itinérants, 2017) for Handicap International and another documentary (De tout temps, on traverse en barque, 2019) in collaboration with the NEW SOUTH collective and the National School of Architecture in Rabat.
In 2018, Faiçal Ben directed (Ales, 2019), his second self-produced short fiction film. The film screened in over 50 international festivals and garnered numerous awards. His third short film (Je suis - La zone interdite, 2023), blending animation with video, is currently on festival tours.
Now, he dedicates himself to writing his first feature-length fiction film. In this regard, he was selected for the Méditalents writing residency followed by Ismael Ferroukhi in 2018. He also participated in the workshop by Jérôme Gary at the Rabat Film Author Festival and recently attended a workshop led by Effie T. Brown & Jordana Mollick organized by Global Media Makers & Film Independent at the Marrakech International Festival and presented at the Cannes Film Market in 2019.
Invited by artist Amine El Gotaibi, for a collaboration with curator Elisa Genivet, they invested in the project Visite à Okavango, presented at the 1__54 contemporary art fair in Marrakech in 2020, with the presence and support of Mr. Jack Lang, director of the Arab World Institute.
Recently, he wrote and co-directed the short documentary "MC1R" in collaboration with artist Dana Fionna Armor, produced by F.B Production with the support of Collection Lambert and the BIAM research center, screened at La FIAC_Paris + Art Basel 2022.
After settling in France, he deemed it opportune to establish the "Rencontres Cinéma Marocain de Toulouse" festival focusing on Moroccan cinema, while creating a space for video art and experimental cinema, culinary art, and music, to catalyze a debate on the contemporary artistic scene in Morocco.
Today, Faiçal is in the final stage of his collaboration, dating between 2021 and 2022, with POUSH manifesto in Paris, for his next hybrid film Close-up (working title), shot on 16mm, produced by Amok Films with the support of KODAK and PANAVISION.
