In the presence of the authors – In memory of Professorr Haïm Zafrani

France – 2010 – 46 min – Language: French/Arabic – Distribution: Les Films de l’Atalante

In partnership with the French Institute in Fes

In Arabic, matrouz means ‘embroidered’. In the oral tradition, the Judeo-Maghrebi heritage that began in the multi-cultural crucible of creative medieval Andalusia is sung in Arabic and Hebrew. How and why can we be sure of the preservation of this culture that shone so brightly on both the northern and southern shores of the Mediterranean?

Simon Elbaz contributes to the evolution of this legacy by pouring French, Latin and Judeo-Spanish into it, interweaving Arabo-Andalusian and oriental musical inspirations and mixing it all into the art of storytelling and theatre. The poet and the man on stage is undoubtedly a promoter of dialogue.

This documentary, shown in the presence of the authors, tells the story of a process both personal and artistic, a journey from tradition to contemporary creation, from a Moroccan village to Paris. This Matrouz is indeed a poetic manifesto for peace!

Website (Simon Elbaz): http://www.matrouz.com/documentaire/index.html

Trailer: https://youtu.be/AH~ScTAF-59s