Projects in development
THE CAMEL DRIVING SCHOOL
Synopsis
In a small Moroccan village, Assia, a devoted housewife, is in search of work to support herself and her son Mohamed after the death of her husband. Taking on a job in a pastry shop in Marrakech, she meets a group of independent women who are involved in the Camel Driving School, a club where they prepare for an amateur rally in the desert. Fascinated, Assia joins the club and begins to lead a double life. When the truth comes out, her life shifts up a gear!
Indie Prod & Take Shelter (France)
Margaux Juvénal
margaux@takeshelter.eu
Nicolas Eschbach
neschbach@indiesales.eu
Maud Leclair Névé
mleclair@indiesales.eu
Art & Essai (Canada)
Jeanne-Marie Poulain
jeannemarie@artetessai.ca
Indie Sales (France)
Nicolas Eschbach
Director’s statement
I have not always told the truth. To my parents, to my friends, to myself. It was easier to meet social expectations that way... until it got complicated. Assia is in a similar situation – but in this case, we see a mother lying to her son. I want to portray this topsy-turvy world in the tone of a bittersweet comedy, full of sunshine and vibrating with passion – just like each of the women in the Camel Club. With tenderness and humor, I seek to explore the need to embrace freedom and pleasure, even if you’re a woman in a patriarchal society. And without leaving your children by the wayside... I see The Camel Driving School as a film full of hope for those who have always dreamed of taking the wheel of their own lives. A final but significant detail: I’ve only just learnt to drive...
Biographies
Swiss-Moroccan writer-director Halima Ouardiri is a graduate of the Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema in Montreal. Her first film, Mokhtar (2010), won wide acclaim, was selected for more than 100 international festivals, among them the Berlin and Toronto International Film Festivals and the International Film Festival Rotterdam, and has won numerous awards. Clebs (2020), a short documentary, won the Crystal Bear and the Special Jury Prize at the Berlinale. Les Patins (2023), her most recent film, had its premiere at TIFF, was selected for the AFI Fest, and continues its tour of the international festival circuit. The Camel Driving School, selected in residency at Groupe Ouest, is her first feature-length film.
Founded by Simon Bleuzé, Alexis Genauzeau and Margaux Juvénal, Take Shelter aims to develop an independent French and international film industry that is committed to both artistic excellence and commercial success. The company co-produced Ramata-Toulaye Sy’s Banel & Adama, which was selected in Competition at the Festival de Cannes, and is currently developing several feature films.
Indie Prod was founded with the ambition of discovering and following international talent creating both film and television series. Headed by Nicolas Eschbach and Maud Leclair Névé, the company’s co-productions include Jasmila Žbanić’s Quo Vadis, Aïda? (2020) and Emad Aleebrahim Dehkordi’s A Tale of Shemroon (2022)..
€2 150 000
€320 000
Autumn—Winter 2024, Marrakech (Morocco)
May 2025
