Bouchra
63rd New York Film Festival
September 26 - October 13, 2025
The creative and personal struggles of a queer Moroccan expat are at the center of this endearing, pathos-laden animated feature, both a story of immigrant identity and an innovative view of life in New York City.
NYFF63 Currents features are sponsored by
Moroccan filmmaker Bouchra is writing an autobiographical film that reflexively weaves together her own life in New York City with that of her fictional double. Bouchra happens also to be a coyote in a city of anthropomorphic creatures, rendered in nearly photorealistic and hyper-expressive animations. Alongside her creative struggles and attempts to unpack her mother’s unresolved feelings about her queerness are everyday releases—sexual encounters, nights out clubbing, intimate conversations—all brilliantly constructed by directors Orian Barki and Meriem Bennani (Life on the CAPS, NYFF60) through actual phone calls, letters, and characters voiced by friends and family playing versions of themselves. Bridging animation and live action, daily life in New York and the complexities of being home in Casablanca, Bouchra is laced with pathos and familiarity, suffused with the political nuances of inhabiting multiple cultures.
Special thanks to our Community Partner, Arab Film and Media Institute.
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