Kino Lorber Acquires Oscar-Contending Moroccan Film "Casablanca Beats" for North American Release

A deal was negotiated by Wendy Lidell of Kino Lorber, Eva Diederix of Wild Bunch International, and CAA Media Finance. Kino Lorber will release "Casablanca Beats" theatrically in the United States and Canada in early 2022, followed by a digital release on its Kino Now streaming service and other platforms, reports Variety. In 2012, the same distributor had previously released Ayouch’s film "God’s Horses," also an Oscar submission.

The Moroccan director’s eighth feature film, "Casablanca Beats" tells the story of Anas, a former rapper, who is hired at a cultural center in a working-class neighborhood of Casablanca, the street youth, and their teacher, in order to promote rap in the underprivileged district of Sidi Moumen - long considered the main slum of the economic capital of Morocco. The film is inspired by Ayouch’s own experience growing up in a working-class suburb in France.

"When we saw ’Casablanca Beats’ at Cannes, we immediately knew it was the perfect film for the moment," said Wendy Lidell, senior vice president of Kino Lorber. "Not only are musicals back in vogue, but the film’s powerful and exuberant message about how art can change the trajectory of a young person’s life, and how freedom of expression can erase a history of repression, resonates as strongly today as ever."