Evolution of Maghrebi Women Cinema: Filles-mères in Sofia (2018) and Adam (2019)

Abstract

This article gives an overview of postcolonial cinema in the Maghreb while focusing on the two Maghrebi filmmakers, Meryem Benm’Barek-Alosï and Maryam Touzani, whose films take a more daring stance on the problem of filles-mères (unmarried mothers) and childbearing out of wedlock in the Moroccan society. This article examines the development of Moudawana (family law) in Morocco, its effects on women's lives, and the concept of shame in Maghrebi culture through a detailed analysis of Sofia (2018) and Adam (2019).

Keywords:

• Maghrebi Cinema
• Moudawana
• unmarried mothers
• nonmarital childbearing
• Sofia (2018)
• Adam (2019)

Notes

1 See Jimia Boutouba’s “Femmes d'images et images de femmes: Parcours féminins et culture visuelle au Maghreb.” Jimia Boutuba discusses how Maghrebi women filmmakers transform the representation of the body and the masculin gaze on the screen.

2 For further information on “Moudawana,” refer to 1: Boutouba, Jimia. “The Moudawana Syndrome: Gender Trouble in Contemporary Morocco.” Research in African Literatures, vol. 45, no. 1, 2014, pp. 24–38; and 2: Hanafi, Leila. “Moudawana and Women’s Rights in Morocco: Balancing National and International Law.” ILSA Journal of International and Comparative Law, vol. 18, no.2, 2011, pp. 515–530.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Haniyeh Barahouie Pasandi

Haniyeh Barahouie Pasandi is Assistant Professor of French and Francophone studies and Affiliate Faculty of Women and Gender Studies at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Her research involves the visual culture of the francophone world and focuses particularly on artistic/literary creations of women.