A Father’s Journey Home to Morocco Takes the Screen in the Netherlands
Two screenings in the Netherlands this Thursday, October 1, bring the family journey to Morocco back to the screen. In *Porte Bagage*, a packed trunk and luggage on the roof accompany a particular departure: that of an ageing father being taken back to his homeland by his children.
In Amsterdam, the university’s VOX-POP space will host the film at 4:30 p.m. In Rotterdam, a second screening is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at the Pauluskerk, with the International Film Festival Rotterdam’s film club. The IFFR says admission is free, with no registration required, for this screening in Dutch and Arabic, with English subtitles.
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These events revisit an experience familiar to many MRE families. The University of Amsterdam describes the drive to Morocco as an annual ritual for Moroccan-Dutch families: several days on the road, meals, songs and conversations between two countries where they feel at home.
*Porte Bagage* captures that atmosphere, but this family is not preparing for an ordinary holiday. Musa, 76, has dementia. After the death of a close friend, he says he wants to return to Morocco. His daughter Noor, 30, cares for him day to day when a job offer as a chef in Paris upends her plans.
A return to Morocco divides the family
For Noor, accompanying her father could allow her to reconcile his wish to return with her own plans to leave. Her brother Farid opposes the idea. She nevertheless manages to persuade her brothers to make the trip with them, forcing each of them to take on a role in caring for Musa.
The road then becomes a place to discuss responsibilities that Noor has largely shouldered until now. Who will take over caring for their father? How can they accept that she wants to leave and work elsewhere? Behind the travel scenes, the film follows a daughter who must also decide what she wants for herself.
The filmmakers know this situation firsthand. Director Abdelkarim El-Fassi and his sister, producer Asma El-Fassi, drew on their own experience as caregivers. The Dutch magazine Filmkrant reports that they worked on this debut feature for six years. It was released in Dutch cinemas on March 20, 2026.
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Before its release, the film toured Dutch theaters alongside a show by comedian Nabil Aoulad Ayad. Today’s screenings bring it to two other venues: a university and a church open to Rotterdam residents. In Amsterdam, the screening is part of the “Herkomst en Horizon” program, dedicated to Moroccan-Dutch memory and identity.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btFcEmG_6Dc
