Palestinian Film 'Happy Holidays' Wins Top Prize at Marrakech Film Festival

The festival's 21st edition highlighted politically charged storytelling, diverse voices, and expanded outreach efforts.

'Happy Holidays,' directed by Scandar Copti, became the first Palestinian film to win Marrakech’s Étoile d’Or award, adding to its accolades from Venice and Thessaloniki.
The film, set in contemporary Haifa, explores family tensions and societal pressures through an ensemble of Arab and Jewish characters.
The jury, led by Luca Guadagnino, awarded the prize unanimously, with the film also earning a shared Best Actress award for Manar Shehab and Wafaa Aoun.
Other major winners included 'The Cottage' and 'The Village Next to Paradise,' which shared the Jury Prize, and Damian Kocur’s 'Under the Volcano,' which won Best Director and Best Actor.
The festival saw record attendance of over 40,000, introduced expanded programming, and reinforced its Atlas Distribution initiative to promote Arab and African cinema.