Bouchra

Produced for Meriem Bennani’s recent solo exhibition at Fondazione Prada, this feature film debut by Bennani and filmmaker Orian Barki — with whom she co-created the video series 2 Lizards — explores the relationship between Bouchra, a queer Moroccan filmmaker living in New York, and her mother, a cardiologist in Casablanca, both depicted as coyotes. Bouchra struggles with the impact of her sexuality on her relationship with her mother while also being eager to move forward with her life and career, convinced that her art will help her address unresolved tensions and conflicts. Structured as a film-within-a-film, the narrative unfolds between fiction, autobiography, and 3D animation. As filmmaker Bouchra engages in intense phone conversations with her mother, drawn from their real exchanges, friends and family also lend their voices to animated anthropomorphic animals representing versions of themselves. As in other works by the artist, the use of animation becomes a tool to address timely and controversial issues such as gender identity and the power of digital technology in an inventive and engaging way.