Where was 'Sirat' filmed? The desert raves and mountain roads of Morocco

"I started with this idea of making a film in the desert with trucks driving fast through the sand. I always start with images. Art is about going through the limit. That's how I do my job. It has to be difficult to achieve beauty. In a tree, the good fruit is never in reach of your hand. You have to climb the tree, and it's risky to climb the tree, but you will have very good views from the top."

"These two spaces are perfect for Sirāt because the mountains are a place for existentialism. You ask yourself how small you are, about your mission in life. I mean, and the response to that existentialism is to surrender. The desert is a place for surrendering."

Óliver Laxe conceived Sirāt in 2011 as a visual concept centered on fast-moving trucks in the desert. The film follows a father searching for his missing daughter at a remote rave in the Sahara, accompanied by his young son and dog, where they encounter a group of ravers and experience surreal tragedies. Shot in Spain and Morocco from May to July 2024 during extreme heat, the production required significant physical and creative challenges. Laxe, who lived in Morocco for over a decade, personally scouted locations using both on-site exploration and Google Maps. The narrative moves between the Sahara Desert and Atlas Mountains, with each landscape serving symbolic purposes: mountains represent existentialism and self-questioning, while the desert embodies surrender. The film is nominated for Best International Feature Film at the Oscars.

Read at CN Traveller