Morocco’s 500 year Festival: The Imilchil Wedding Festival | Festivals | Full Documentary | TRACKS

festivals great occasions and great gatherings full of color and spectacle the most revealing of those ancient festivals would celebrate the key moments of life birth marriage and death these festivals are bursting with life and energy carnival processions special meals lively music and firework displays in this film we're celebrating love and marriage in the high atlas mountains of North Africa every year that Berber people of Morocco gather at harvest time to buy and sell and to lay in provisions for the winter but above all their festival is a time for getting married in front of all the people and a time for young men and women and their families to spot a good marriage partner for the future let's join the celebration and go to the festival [Music] the landscape of the High Atlas Mountains of Morocco in North Africa is harsh but impressive this rugged terrain is home to tribes of the ancient Berber people the original inhabitants of Morocco before the Arab conquest in fact they probably got their name from the medieval Arabic word for North Africans who weren't Arabic speakers but the Berbers call themselves the amaz again or free people traditionally they are nomadic moving their animals around the high pastures and valleys divided into clans and tribes they fiercely guard their independence and many keep themselves separate by living in these mountainous areas [Music] they speak their own languages with over ten million speakers in the Central Atlas region close to three million Speaker Berber language called Tammuz eat but the lives of the Berbers are changing these days they live in villages of mud brick houses rather than in tents there are mobile phones and satellite dishes with trucks often replacing the old transport system of camels and donkeys in September every year the tribes of the eight hydrogen Berbers gather to celebrate a famous marriage festival or Muhsin near the town of immature vehicles and cranes are busily creating a festival site around a remote village which houses the blue domed tomb of an Islamic saint city Mohamed el magani it's a holy place for couples to get married but it's also the setting for a huge market and over the coming days a tent city will spring up and as many as 30,000 Berbers will gather in this isolated location in the mountains for a festival that dates back 500 years with only three days to go to the big wedding day the festival site is still not ready the large paved area of the center of events is still a bit of a building site but the first traders are already arriving all of them keen to get the best spots for displaying their wares the man who has to keep it together and moving forward his festival organizer Mohamed Luger he knows where everything has to go at the commuting to Kerry Mulino Minnesota Academy no one in the Montezuma Nina all in the time we came sit here they came she more in the dark when in the dominance Hanna Marin de Bono's moku she became she modem at the clinic MCM would leave a little girl Oregon and a click either the item badly blossom attack laments like a dream or reduce who will miss a deer on Qadir oh I do so folklore Oh no further not yet music the Berbers of the remote high atlas are sensitive about intrusion into their private and public traditions concerning marriage there are many tourists who visit amore chill for them ouessem but it is rare to have access to a bride and groom who are getting married at the festival the groom's house is the scene of the busiest action because the bride will join the groom's family home after the ceremonies and there's a race on to get the house ready for her the men of the family are all painting there's the groom Mohammed who's 26 his brother Abdullah and his father Zayed who's happy with his boys work it's a big job because they've built an extension to the main house to accommodate two couples Abdullah is also getting married soon Mohammed is very excited by the upcoming wedding and he really hopes his bride will like the decoration Justin no judge Muhammad is only met his bride-to-be twice once to talk for an hour and a second time to make a contract but he sees the marriage is very much his choice - we need stuff in radius dancer Sharon I did correct phone and salvation' detonated tonight inducted all rod a deaf interpreter Nashville but to do necessarily Dinesen doesn't in into the Alpha Delta I miss Amanda government's emission tomography Danny they do charities I see certain miss over yet earlier at least a bit it's hungry work doing all the decorating and the family gathers for a welcome meal hand-washing rituals are an important feature of Berber life because food is eaten with the right hand a today's meal one of the daughters her feeder is pouring the water over everyone's hands the family enjoys a traditional dish which is well known across the world and named after the distinctive conical cooking pot it's a delicious potato topped tagine spiced with saffron the family scooped up the food with the oven baked bread Mohammed stepmother her new is looking forward to the arrival of the new bride judge said gathered you'll enjoy handsome Jim thousand shots up top here nice Kimmy right yep in her new will not be going to the festival Zedd and the children will go while she takes care of the house and farm but she remembers her own wedding well and her feelings about it natal generally when a old know you would say ed is her news second husband she divorced her first husband and is clear that it's not shameful to divorce in Islam but she's glad that times have changed and that women now have greater freedom of choice than she had in her first marriage Linda Murphy I was a young for her knew her marriage to Syed has been much happier but her story shows how marriage is made in the traditional Birbal way could go wrong [Music] back at the festival there's a problem that needs to be sorted with the wedding tent the place where all the marriages take place the construction team have got the wrong poles and there's a flurry of phone calls to fix it more and more traders are unloading their amazing range of brightly colored goods among them is a group of women who set up a cooperative to achieve a degree of independence for themselves their leader is Fatima more more [Music] Susan Alamo a Mandarin funny scene isn't level nucleus or whatever made that a diamonds camera this we and racial today I'm sure she was coverage million a linear is not a deal there any nice V ever she's wanted and she went affirmative a diamond the wedding tent is finally pulled up into place and made secure and mister who jars team of workers are clearly relieved and delighted after all it will be the focal point of the wedding festival and for all the problems that have to be solved in the busy deadlines nothing stops mr. Luger smiling okay the moment I saw those happy to me man the annual event of the email chill festival is underpinned by an ancient myth which is both romantic and tragic in the huge landscapes of this high atlas region are two Lakes Lake tis lit which means bride in the Tammuz eat language and Lake is Li which means groom there was always intense competition for grazing land between the Berbers which led to conflict between tribes and this is where the Romeo and Juliet story of lovers from different tribes comes in and the myth of the two lakes [Music] it's all explained by lassen our board who's a Berber official at the festival man you never yell but I owned a desert and not Michelle died about him later but worried now a little admission you hate over hymns that Aryan at Emporia would slit slit her third detain him Tony same Larson is an educated pervert who is proud of the way his education has given him and his family new possibilities [Music] his life's journey is summed up by a stone hut near Lake Isley it's where his family used to live in summer when they took the Sheep to the higher pastures [Music] makino some hadn't survived in velocity mean she'd known our dynamic Avenue Yahara Democrat then do not annex owed that is a determinate Snowden defends him dinner a wooden about our alien observer in the changing world of the Berbers last now wants to see the same opportunity extended to his own daughters another bizarre here intimate Manasa days went on the man a simple cognitive a little far apart I deserve no more Russian land Larson's vision of the future is still a long way from the reality of daily life for most berber women including that of the bride in our story Mohammed's bride is called Fatima she's 23 years old but she's lived a sheltered life in her village she and her family have received gifts of clothing sugar and henna from Muhammad's family it's all part of sealing the engagement she's very shy and clearly nervous about the big change in her life which the wedding will bring but Fatima will be going to a relatively prosperous home with Muhammad's family and her father is confident that the marriage is the right thing but Fatima's mother is very conscious of losing her daughter she herself was an orphan and didn't have a loving home like Fatima but she reluctantly accepts reality [Music] it's not unusual for a bride or a groom to be nervous just before the life-changing event of a marriage and fátima contemplates her future as a married woman with some uncertainty [Music] platanus groom Mohammed works on the family farm which produces maize and other vegetable crops like potatoes [Music] agriculture is important for many Burma's who make a living by farming the mountain slopes though they still graze their sheep and goat herds in the highlands during the summer months [Music] much of the farming is still done by manual labor crops are harvested by hand and field size is generally quite small and irrigation water is always available from nearby mountain streams [Music] Muhammad's family farm needs to do well this year because it's a big thing to afford a wedding and a wife especially as berber Brides do not bring dowry from their families there will be new clothes and carpets to buy for his Brides arrival but he's confident she's worth it and his hopes are high for a successful marriage leave him alone visitor share that sentiment of B they have all been some food after they had all been nurses back at the festival site mr. Zhao is busy sorting out the right places for the different traders a vegetable seller knows exactly where he wants to set up his store one of his most important products is for chewing to make the teeth and attractive yellow color it's the opposite of glossy TV adverts for lovely white teeth but all this romantic stuff cuts no ice with mr. Luger he wants the vegetable seller to move but the man likes this pitch and doesn't want to move mr. J insists and he has the backing of men in uniform after all this is an official matter in a festival that gets a lot of government attention the trader isn't really happy about it at all and stays as close as possible to his favorite spot by the end of the day at the festival site the market is starting to take shape in a couple of days time the noise and bustle will be extraordinary [Music] the next day dawns and before all the buying and selling starts up the morning prayer must be said even in isolation up on the mountain slopes above the festival site [Music] out in the countryside at Mohamed's home his father Zayed is at work early cleaning the prize ball for sale at the market it's really important for the financing of the wedding dad [Music] it will need a truck to get this magnificent bull to the festival market not every farming family has its own motorized transport but when a truck arrives it's all hands to the task of getting this large animal on board the next few hours will be important for Mohammed the enemy or home city from Cylon ship which is the film Olympus to me or from scene [Music] [Music] [Music] the festival site has been transformed into a spectacular market and there are specialist sections of various kinds in the grain market you can buy two types of gray one for animals and one for bread making it's a crucial purchase for the Berbers of the high atlas those who live in the more remote areas will buy supplies here for a whole year the donkey market is a place of sharp haggling over prices in many ways this sums up the mix of the ancient and modern in berber life trucks are common but the donkey is still an important means of transport but it's the bull market that's the key destination for Mohammed he's joined by Zayed and Abdullah for this vital piece of trading they cast shrewd and experienced eyes over the prices and the ages of the Bulls on sale then an Arab buyer sizes up Mohammed's bull and offers 15,000 Moroccan diddums for about eighteen hundred US dollars it's not really enough for Mohammed who needs to do better given all the expenses of the wedding he has to cover the buyer is disappointed to be rejected but Mohammed stands firm Oh there's a lot at stake here for so many people Fatima Marmol from the woman's cooperative has traveled for six hours to get here and it's cost her the equivalent of a hundred and twenty five US dollars which is a lot of money for her so she needs to sell eight hundred loaves each day of the festival just to break even so far today she's only sold a hundred but she has to make this word ottoman dumb stuff soon as it moves if we can lead safe filled not worry me not worry estar la about olives 781 a new animated them came to us to confess to him I didn't I think it's a funny you know ian was Vinicius has meant to smell his newer school credit to the line related to the runs the fear is Nina Scott suffer I win Namsan Osawatomie Latin pronunciation is a novelty for Mary Alice Young Goodman its measured modeled for opera network Chile's in the UN to arrange a Mercedes team an external system has a new Canadian very adamant she Racine there's a lot of pressure on Fatima her parents are divorced and she feels very alone even this strong young woman is looking for personal happiness at the festival no I don't understand but in this you know that I have the tenement Mishima gym was clean there are so many stories of divorce in this society perhaps there's a possibility that greater freedom of marriage choice for individuals will produce stronger marriages but divorce rates are also high in Western societies where individual choice is the norm [Music] it's the day before the wedding ceremony and there's been a sudden injection of uncertainty into the preparations all 38 couples who were to be married tomorrow have been summoned to appear before a judge at the courthouse in immature it seems to be a totally unexpected turn of events Fatima has arrived and goes inside but Mohamed arrives later there's a lot of coming and going this morning events inside the core to given an official explanation by lassen defended are given summary DOMA made the man locked quickly to possess or demolish a lot of bureaucratic care is being taken because this is a sensitive matter in Morocco the muda wanna reforms of 2004 have had a major impact on women's rights under this legal code women cannot be married against their will there are careful restrictions on having more than one wife and the legal age for marriage has been raised to 18 when Mohamed comes out of the courthouse he talks to lassen about what happened sabaidee to us at Salerno me wrong sniffles any letters were looking to visit the Joseph Italy the cafes of Emil chill a good places to recover from the rush but there are also places for serious business and it's here that the contrasting attitudes and hopes of different young people can be clearly seen and heard Medici boo is having coffee with a couple of friends MIDI is an English student in university he likes life in the emotional area where his family keeps a hotel but he's looking for change through education has demon wahwah dr benhamadi ama efrain's lender hit a neo mission card at Seska Sarada rose carcinogenesis narada rose that card Ian Ian Ian Ian when Daniels Bethany exid's arada is hoola that Kedah me immediately hominid whenever out the way in many ways MIDI is typical of young educated people whose attitudes of modernizing and becoming more international marina or excessive machine important era veteran air the sadness halted starlet interest caddy nothing in the Nexus Americanized now craft Indian Americans in a big contrast with MIDI story lesson is helping a young man called Ally he wants to marry his 15 year old girlfriend a judge can use his discretion on this matter down to the age of 15 but the paperwork has to be right it's become contentious behavior in the light of the mood awana code any power as you please with all the muda wanna do statue key organizes it activity not on par lotto beyond the deposit Doha deselect Elohim the dossier completely gaseous honors as Ali's girlfriend is under the legal age her father's permission will be needed for the marriage to go ahead at the festival for all lessons useful help Ali will have to wait to find out if you'll be allowed to marry the next day it's a nervous time the surprise summons to the court in emoji has brought together mohammad and fatima and her father who drink tea while they wait for progress from the judge in the authorities being in mixed company in a cafe is clearly unfamiliar territory for Fatima but Mohammed is happy with the surprise encounter [Music] today is Friday and even in the crowded market area it's imperative to stop for the gym wha or Islamic congregational prayers that take place on this day in mosques all over the world the loaded mosque is so full that there's an overspill of worshipers on two makeshift prayer mats outside the sounds of the market animals almost drown the Imams voice leading the prayers but nothing distracts the worshipers this festival is full of contrasts and surprises the old and the new the religious and the very earthy MIDI is exploring the market and even this very modern young Berber is drawn to a stall selling porcupine quills which are being offered for their aphrodisiac power the salesman is confident they'll do the trick but he also offers the magical power of mercury which is traditionally used in everything related to love including the Quicksilver reactions of men and women who seek a partner [Music] there's a great deal of excitement in flirtation in the air and you pick it up even though some young women have their faces veiled and are keeping to the cultural and religious traditions of modesty [Music] gone are the days when you found a partner and got married all in one go at the festival but although the serious exploration of marriage possibilities is now done through family connections back in the villages this is still a good chance to weigh up the attractions of possible partners [Music] one young man can scarcely contain himself he's so full of expectation [Music] I was measured no hysteria Artie dakahliya youth in China charissa dimension as Brazilian so an innocence science and sharonsutera Melanson the harridan sense that mentions these regions now out in our hands one another a confidence that sons like Erica means but it's important not to get too carried away by all the erotic energy in romantic charm of the festival there's a lot of intensely practical trading to do weaving carpets and clothing is daily work for Berber women and this is the place to update your equipment and there's brisk trade at the hardware store where you can pick up metal objects for the house and the farm the desert for winter we need olive usiness the third mode cookie dance just the domain about different be ban poor students are very sad I did attend tomorrow doctor and where is a health when push it is the rain comes all in the afternoon though the forecast is good for the wedding's next day this annual event looks to the eye of an outsider like a mixture of Agricultural Show and rock festival and it needs the same sort of stamina and endurance for the 38 couples who are getting married need to have some rest before the formal ceremony tomorrow [Music] the big day has arrived the festival site has started to stir into action the ceremonial area next to the Saints tomb is still fairly quiet but traders are getting ready for one of the biggest shopping days in the year [Music] the marriage traditions of the high atlas are very distinctive but there's something about a wedding day that feels familiar across the world in the bridal home the family is having a simple breakfast before the journey to the wedding ceremony you have to build yourself up for a wedding day Fatima joins them a bit on the late side she looks fairly relaxed at this early stage of the day then her mother fetches the special bridal costume it's known as a hand allure and is a specially woven wedding blanket which is worn as a cape on the marriage day a symbol of the new life she'll be entering at the groom's family home pandas are often white with sequin decoration but others like Fatima's are colored and patterned in the style of the tribe this one striped in black white and the red that symbolizes peace and an open heart is typical of the ITER sub-tribe to which Fatima's family belongs and now father and daughter set off for the wedding festival in a waiting car they leave behind the quiet of the morning village and make their way on the dusty roads to join the thousands descending on the festival site unlike a wedding in the West where it's all about the individual bride and groom this will be a collective event with a focus on legal formalities the family celebrations will come at a later date [Music] as Fatima walks through the crowded festival site she passes a number of other brides in a variety of costumes [Music] these days perhaps only half of Berber weddings in the high atlas take place at the festival but the occasion is still hugely important for the marriage making process across the whole society [Music] there's always a lot of waiting around on a day like this Muhammad is radiating himself for the wedding and has the men of his family to support him over at the wedding tent Berber officials like lesson wear traditional costume for the ceremony and he relishes the ancient traditions of the Moose him even if he also takes a practical approach Jill about glossary see ya Joe believe me babushka gasp possibility we some the officials of the Moroccan government are present in modern suits their involvement is an important sign of the state's interest in this key annual event in Berber society historically it's been an important part of the census process for a state that wanted to have better information about the Berber tribes the Berbers have achieved much stronger cultural and language rights in recent times but the Moroccan government still controls all aspects of public life carefully there's always plenty of media interest in the ceremonial events with international and local crews trying to get the best vantage points to capture its unique character ceremony begins with an invocation for the blessing of Allah in toned by the Imam strikingly for the outside observer there's no particular atmosphere of romance in the wedding tent this event of multiple marriages is all about making matters legal [Music] Mohammed and Fatima moved through the process in line the paperwork is checked to prove that they are free to marry and that all is correct under the marriage laws then they pick up an envelope with a gift from the state of one thousand D Rams which is about one hundred and twenty five US dollars and among the couples there's Ali who's been successful in getting permission to marry his 15 year old girlfriend [Music] as always at weddings there's a sort of release of energy and celebration after the formal proceedings the main spectacle of the Moose M now starts to unfold in the area next to the Saints tomb at the heart of the gathering are the aji dews dancers and musicians whose percussion singing and movement lead the communal festivities at key times of the year especially harvest the sharing out of a gigantic loaf is a symbol of the bounty of the harvest and of the unity between the families of bride and groom for the couples who've married the day continues with refreshments at the government building but out in the tent city the market trading is in full swing [Music] Fatima MooMoo is hard at work selling the cooperative's bread and she's beautifully dressed for this special day it would be no surprise if she caught the eye of one of the men at the festival who knows if a new phase of her life will start at this year's Musa [Music] mr. Zhang is keeping an eye on the market stalls to make sure there's no disturbance of the layout and that everything's going smoothly but there's a proud family moment about to happen which is much closer to his heart [Music] one of the key rituals on the wedding day is the procession which shows a traditional bride riding a white mule accompanied by a goat symbolizing wealth and a child representing fertility she's on her way to the bridegroom's house and the mock fighting with palm branches is a ritual testing of the groom to see if he has the necessary patience to be a good husband this year the young boy is mr. Eagers son Carly after he gets down from the mule he's warmly greeted by his father who's proud and delighted that the boys been at the center of events Fatima and Mohammed now have a new status as they go on a first shopping trip together around the market [Music] it's a moment of first companionship and they look relaxed with each other as Fatima searches for some new clothes [Music] there's also a chance for a welcome glass of juice on a tiring day [Music] the old traditions of finding a partner and getting married at the great gathering of the festival are still strong but like in all other aspects of berber life the ways of the people are clearly changing a pride in berber identity is the common ground but some embrace modernization and education in a way that will change how men and women relate to each other in a marriage and in new opportunities for women at work you know very the oral Tomasulo toffee or observed Americans in Tanana and as a slur for service weather arrives with a regatta mr. worry Obama d'Ivoire about the day would fall by the rim or anybody else who is even now a dynamic masquerade even a year the festival continues as darkness gathers over the high atlas mountains but Mohamed and Fatima are waiting for their transport to take them back to their homes their big domestic celebration lies ahead when the bride finally travels to the groom's house for their life together [Music] but the journey has started let's hope they find happiness together [Music]

Channel: TRACKS

Views: 413,437

Rating: 4.749867 out of 5

Keywords: TRACKS, tracks travel channel, tracks travel, Documentary movies - topic, full documentary, travel documentary, culture documentary, The Imilchil Wedding Festival, berber people, berber wedding festival, moroccan berber, moroccan culture, berber wedding, morocco travel, imilchil festival, moroccan women, moroccan wedding, moroccan festivals, moroccan culture and traditions, moroccan culture documentary, morocco travel guide

Id: NCed8DZtmNE

Length: 47min 36sec (2856 seconds)

Published: Sat Jul 18 2020