04.04.2012 - Three films that were screened at the Abu Dhabi Film Festival last October were honored at this year’s Tétouan International Mediterranean Film Festival, held in Morocco March 24-31.

Death for Sale, a SANAD-funded film by established Moroccan director Faouzi Bensaïdi, which draws a noir portrait of Tétouan's sordid gangland through the story of three friends, was awarded Best Narrative Film.

Rough Hands by Mohamed Asli, another prominent Moroccan filmmaker, received both the Public Award and the Best Actress award for Houda Rihani for her role in this heartwarming Casablanca story of those who have no choice but to bend the law to survive.  

In the short film category, Mkhobbi fi Kobba (Soubresauts) from Tunisia, Leila Bouzid’s take on the Tunisian petit bourgeoisie, won the top prize.

Sixteen countries participated with 12 feature films, 15 short films and 12 documentaries in the festival, which is now in its 18th year. Documentaries dealing with the uprisings in Tunisia, Egypt and Syria were screened as part of a special program called Cinema and the Arab Spring.