If we're lucky, once in our life we'll find a teacher like Anas. When he shows up to teach hip-hop to teens in Casablanca, things are gonna change.
From the start, Anas (Anas Basbousi) poses a threat, and the adults around him try to put him in his place. "This is an arts center," the school's icy proprietress says. "With rules."
Anas's students come from the shantytown district of Sidi Moumen, more famous for some early-2000s bombings than for producing artists. They yearn to tell the truth about themselves, but Anas isn't about to accept cheap posturing -- "Why should we listen to you settle your problems with some guy?"
He teaches rapping from the heart, and that's scary to people deeply invested in tradition. His students want so much to give a concert that they ask passersby in the streets to buy tickets, and soon the performance hall is full. As vibrant as it is, the show becomes a provocation. "Girls dancing almost naked -- it's shameful!" rails a parent. A riot erupts, and Anas is out of a job.
Still, the seed has been planted and the young people are blossoming:
"Eyes open I dream, I float on the stars...
"I feel like I'm crumbling, I'm stuck, I'm stumbling...
"I'm done with the strife, I want a new life...
"Won't die stupidly, on a raft to Italy...
"Gonna dig you out of the dirt you were born in..."
Certainly powerful stuff.
I discovered "Casablanca Beats" in the summer's "Films on the Green" series in NYC -- French movies featuring dance.
I'm really glad I got to meet Anas and his kids, and to learn of the ineffable potential of rap.
From the start, Anas (Anas Basbousi) poses a threat, and the adults around him try to put him in his place. "This is an arts center," the school's icy proprietress says. "With rules."
Anas's students come from the shantytown district of Sidi Moumen, more famous for some early-2000s bombings than for producing artists. They yearn to tell the truth about themselves, but Anas isn't about to accept cheap posturing -- "Why should we listen to you settle your problems with some guy?"
He teaches rapping from the heart, and that's scary to people deeply invested in tradition. His students want so much to give a concert that they ask passersby in the streets to buy tickets, and soon the performance hall is full. As vibrant as it is, the show becomes a provocation. "Girls dancing almost naked -- it's shameful!" rails a parent. A riot erupts, and Anas is out of a job.
Still, the seed has been planted and the young people are blossoming:
"Eyes open I dream, I float on the stars...
"I feel like I'm crumbling, I'm stuck, I'm stumbling...
"I'm done with the strife, I want a new life...
"Won't die stupidly, on a raft to Italy...
"Gonna dig you out of the dirt you were born in..."
Certainly powerful stuff.
I discovered "Casablanca Beats" in the summer's "Films on the Green" series in NYC -- French movies featuring dance.
I'm really glad I got to meet Anas and his kids, and to learn of the ineffable potential of rap.