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Living in Tazmamart
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Living in Tazmamart
IDFA 2019

Living in Tazmamart

Vivre à Tazmamart
Davy Zylberfajn
France
2005
72 min
n.a.
Festival history

In August 1973, 58 Moroccan men “disappeared.” Military men involved in a failed coup, they were sent by King Hassan II to a secret and specially constructed prison in eastern Morocco. They were left to rot in dark underground cells without any contact with the outside world or hope for release. Many died. 

In Living in Tanzamart, we meet several survivors. They talk about unbearable temperature extremes, how they distracted each other with stories in the pitch dark, and how, no matter how bad things got, they took care of one another. Their stories speak of a terrible case of injustice, but also of tender humanity and the strength of the survival instinct. The static shots of the speaking men are mixed with images of sloping green hills, laundry drying in the wind and the endless sea. These images stand in stark contrast to the claustrophobic stories told by the men, who still become visibly emotional as they share memories from their darkest hell.

Credits
Director
    Davy Zylberfajn
    Davy Zylberfajn
Production
    Marie-Claude Reverdin for Cauri Film
    Marie-Claude Reverdin for Cauri Film
Involved TV Channel
    TV 10 Angers
    TV 10 Angers
Editing
    Anita Perez
    Anita Perez
Sound
Screening copy
    Davy Zylberfajn
    Davy Zylberfajn