Give Me the Backstory: Get to Know Asmae El Moudir, the Filmmaker Behind The Mother of All Lies
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One of the most thrilling aspects of the Sundance Film Festival is the opportunity to witness the future of independent filmmaking unfold before our eyes. While the work presented offers a glimpse into the minds of its creators, there’s always more to learn about the individuals behind these captivating stories. This year, as part of our ongoing series Give Me the Backstory, we delve into the journey of documentary filmmaker Asmae El Moudir, whose film *The Mother of All Lies* left a lasting impression at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival.
El Moudir’s journey into filmmaking began with a question — a question that, in 2012, led her down an artistic path spanning over a decade. The filmmaker sought answers about her family’s history and their connection to a dark moment in Moroccan history: the 1981 Casablanca Bread Riots. El Moudir was struck by the absence of any family photographs from her childhood, an oddity that nagged at her. This personal mystery evolved into *The Mother of All Lies*, a documentary that would later screen at Sundance’s prestigious Spotlight section after premiering at the 76th Cannes Film Festival, where El Moudir took home the Un Certain Regard Best Director award.
At the heart of *The Mother of All Lies* is a story of memory and loss, both personal and collective. The Casablanca Bread Riots saw 600 protestors killed in a single day, and these events unfolded near El Moudir’s family home. Her relatives, like many others, had chosen to bury the trauma of that day deep within their past. But El Moudir was determined to unearth the truth. With her grandmother, mother, and father participating in the documentary, she set out to uncover family secrets and national scars alike.
Given the challenges of filming in Casablanca, El Moudir turned to an inventive solution to tell her story: animated miniature marionettes. These puppets became a key tool in bringing her family's experiences and memories to life, particularly in moments that were difficult or impossible to film in her hometown.
For El Moudir, *The Mother of All Lies* is an exploration of oral history — a way to revive memories long buried and ensure that the past is not forgotten. “My film is about oral memory,” El Moudir explains. “If images are erased and bodies are hidden or disappeared, people’s memories are still recalled. Through my film, I want to say that we must never crush or erase a black or white past. It’s the past of generations, and we must preserve it and assume it, because each generation needs to re-appropriate its past, to identify with it, in order to move on to the future.”
Bringing the truth of her family's past to light was not easy, and the process came with significant challenges. El Moudir had to contend with the emotional weight of the story and the practical hurdles of filming in Morocco. But she persisted, driven by a desire to ensure that history, both personal and national, would not fade away.
In her conversation with us, El Moudir spoke about the journey behind *The Mother of All Lies*, the challenges she faced along the way, and how her passion for storytelling led her to filmmaking. As she reflects on the experience, it’s clear that her work is a testament to the power of memory — a reminder that the stories of the past must be preserved, no matter how difficult they are to confront.