La Nuit des Rois

Movie
Original title	La Nuit des Rois
Country of production	France , Canada , Ivory Coast
original language	French , Nouchi , Dioula
Publishing year	2020
length	90 minutes
Rod
Director	Philippe Lacôte
script	Philippe Lacôte, ; Delphine Jaquet
production	Delphine Jaquet , ; Ernest Konan , ; Yanick Létourneau
music	Olivier Alary
camera	Tobie Marier Robitaille
cut	Aube Foglia
occupation
	Steve Tientcheu : Barbe Noire; Rasmané Ouédraogo: Soni; Abdoul Karim Konaté: Let; Laetitia Ky: The Queen; Issaka Sawadogo: Nivaquine; Bakary Koné: Roman; Digbeu Jean Cyrille; Anzian Marcel; Denis Lavant;

La Nuit des Rois (international English-language title Night of the Kings ) is a film by Philippe Lacôte that is due to premiere at the Venice International Film Festival in early September 2020 .

action

The young street criminal Zama, who was up to mischief in the Ivorian capital Abidjan , is sent to “La Maca”, a prison in the middle of the forest that is ruled by its prisoners. There the storytelling ritual is practiced , with which the prisoners can be controlled.

When the older Barbe Noire falls ill and his position as boss is increasingly questioned, Zama is supposed to tell a story for a whole night of blood moon.

production

The premise of the film with Zama, who must fear for his life if he cannot tell a story, is based on Scheherazade . This main character from the framework of the Persian Tales of the Arabian Nights and daughter of the vizier of the Persian King Shahryâr has to tell him a new story every day in order not to be killed the next morning. The storytelling is to be understood at the same time as a homage to the tradition of the griot , in parts of West Africa a professional singer, poet and instrumentalist who recites epic texts in a certain form of singing as an award singer, storyteller, teacher or purely for entertainment.

The director was Philippe Lacôte , who developed the film with the support of the TorinoFilmLab, among others. In 2017 the working title Zama King became known. It is the second feature film by the French-Ivorian filmmaker , who also wrote the script together with Delphine Jaquet .

The film was shot in late summer and autumn 2019 in Ivory Coast. The city of Abidjan shown in the film was the country's capital between 1933 and 1983. The MACA in Abidjan chosen as the setting in the film was considered to be one of the most overcrowded prisons in West Africa. In the wake of the 2010/11 government crisis , all 5,000 prisoners were released and armed on March 31, 2011.

A first screening is planned for September 7, 2020 at the Venice International Film Festival in the Orizzonti section. It will then be shown from September 10, 2020 at the Toronto International Film Festival , where it is nominated in Contemporary World Cinema, and at the end of September, beginning of October 2020 at the New York Film Festival .