Ouarzazate, or "Hollywood of Africa" ​​and "the quiet city", is described as the world's largest natural film studio, located in the southeast of the Kingdom of Morocco, and combines its geographical contradictions, different terrains, and diverse natural life.

Ouarzazate is distinguished by its mountains, some of which exceed a thousand meters in height, in addition to sand dunes, arid desert and dry valleys, and it has beautiful oases and permanent springs.

Unique varieties of trees and plants grow there, such as palm trees, henna and saffron.

And it was said in the reason for its name that “Ouarzazate” is an Amazigh word consisting of two words;

The first is “War”, which means “without”, and the second is “Zazat”, which means noise, so that the phrase “without noise” denotes this quiet town, which lies meekly on the slopes of the High Atlas Mountains from the south.

Site

The city of Ouarzazate is located in the southeast of Morocco, 600 km south of the capital Rabat, and about 200 km southeast of the city of Marrakech. It is considered the administrative capital of the Ouarzazate region, whose borders lie within the Draa-Tafilalet region.

This important location and its charming and picturesque nature have earned it an advanced position in the cinematic and tourism fields, both locally and globally, and it has become a destination for tourists and those interested in the film industry from all over the world.

Ouarzazate has filmed many international films, especially American ones, and is considered an important pole for directors (Reuters)

population

The population of the municipality of Ouarzazate in 2014 amounted to more than 71 thousand people, most of whom work in the fields of film production and tourism guidance. Ouarzazate is one of the developing regions in terms of population, as its population increased from 56 thousand to 71 thousand in 10 years.

The work of thousands of them is not limited to secondary roles in international films (extras), but many of them participated in important main roles in some films, including interior designers, sound and lighting technicians, and accessory producers.

In general, a job in the film production process is not without the presence of the people of Ouarzazate as a main party in it.

In addition to the cinema, many people in the city are active in the tourism sector, including tour guides, organizers of international and domestic trips for tourists, workers in the field of transportation, in addition to workers in the hotel services sector, restaurants and entertainment venues.

History

Ouarzazate is a relatively modern city when compared to its sisters from the Moroccan cities steeped in history. The age of the city in its modern form does not exceed 100 years, and before 1920 Ouarzazate was only a military barracks for the French garrison.

The large number of castles and forts in it indicates that it was an important military station for the armies that crossed it or settled in it, just as its original inhabitants used to take refuge in these "reeds" from the attacks of enemies and occupiers.

This city has written its contemporary golden history, with what God has deposited in it of the magic of the place, the beauty of nature, the diversity of the terrain and the resources, which qualified it to be the “Hollywood of Africa”, and the present of Moroccan and international cinema.

To enhance its global position, the official authorities signed a "twinning" protocol between Ouarzazate and the American city of "Los Angeles", which includes the Hollywood District, the center of the global film industry.

Fenty Oasis in the Moroccan region of Ouarzazate near Errachidia in the High Atlas Mountains (French)

Economy

Hollywood Africa brought in tens of millions of dollars to support the Moroccan national economy, by attracting foreign investments to the region, and this was helped by several encouraging laws that allow foreign production companies to recover a percentage of what they spend during filming.

The government is seeking to reduce taxes on cinematic works, so that the tax rate collected is much lower than its counterparts in Europe and America, to the extent that the city has attracted cinematic and television works from the farthest parts of the world, such as South Korea.

The city also has an active international airport, which secures the arrival of film crews and their equipment, in addition to transporting tourists to this area.

Milestones

The city of Ouarzazate is known for its many historical castles, the most prominent of which is the "Ait Ben Haddou" castle, which is one of the best present examples of Moroccan medieval architecture. It has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987. This castle is distinguished by its distinguished location, huge construction, and engineering. unique.

These castles are called "kasbahs" (plural kasbah), which are attractive archaeological sites, built of mud, and contain many decorations and engineering designs specific to Moroccan civilization.

Among the most prominent of these castles is also the famous "Amridil" castle, which was built in the 17th century, where many famous films were filmed in it, in addition to the "Taweret" castle, which is distinguished by its ancient inscriptions on the walls and ceilings.

And daily trips in the heart of the desert are among the most recreational activities that tourists are keen to try, as there are wonderful sand dunes.

Ait Ben Haddou Castle, about 32 kilometers northwest of Ouarzazate (French)

The most important films that were filmed in Ouarzazate

The city of Ouarzazate witnessed the making of hundreds of international films, starting with the movie “The Moroccan Goat Shepherd” in 1897, then “Morocco” in 1930, and “Othello” in 1949, then the most famous cinematic works followed, headed by “The Man Who Knows More” in 1955 by James Stewart. , and “Lawrence of Arabia” 1962 by Omar Sharif, and “Patton” 1970 by George C. Scott.

There is also the movie "The Man Who Will Be King" 1975 by Sean Connery, "The Jewel of the Nile" in 1985 by Michael Douglas, and the movie "Wondon" by American director Martin Scorsese, which required building a model of the palace of the ruler of Tibet.

The city also witnessed other international film industry, such as the movie "The Mummy", which starred Canadian actor Brendan Fraser in 1999.

As well as the movie "The Gladiator", which starred New Zealand actor Russell Crowe in 2000, and the movie "The Return of the Mummy" in 2001, and "Spy Game" by Robert Redford and Brad Pitt in 2001, and "Live from Baghdad" by Michael Keaton in 2002, and "Hidalgo". Omar Sharif 2004, “Alexander” by Colin Farrell and Angelina Jolie 2004, “Kingdom of Heaven” by Orlando Bloom, Eva Green and Khaled El Nabawi 2005, and other cinematic works.

The most famous studios

The Ouarzazate studios are among the largest studio complexes in the world in terms of area, and one of the most important of these complexes is the "Atlas" studios, which began to appear in 1983, and were built on an area of ​​21 thousand square meters, which is equivalent to 5 acres, and the complex was expanded until it reached 126 thousand square meters, equivalent to 30 acres.

The complex includes laboratories for cinematic professions of various specializations, sites for explosives, stables for hundreds of horses and camels, offices for production management, and 3 studios of different sizes for filming.

There are also “Kan Zaman” studios, which are located 10 kilometers from the heart of the city of Ouarzazate, and it is the largest, with an area of ​​​​about 252 thousand square meters, equivalent to 60 acres, and includes a number of production management offices, laboratories and montage halls, stores and halls For artists to rest, in addition to exhibitions, shops, cafes, restaurants, playgrounds, a hotel unit in the traditional style, and a center for cinematography, which includes 4 studios of different sizes.

In Ouarzazate, there is also the "Aster" studio complex, which was established in 1992 opposite the historic "Sidi Daoud" castle, in which the "Le Pebble" television series produced by the Italian "Aster" and the American "TNT" was filmed.