FILMS

Like many Jews who fled Morocco during the rising racial tension spurred by the Yom Kippur War, Michael Abitbol left Casablanca as a child and never looked back. Estranged from his father, a once famous Jewish musician, Michael reluctantly returns to his boyhood home years later. With the help of a comical Muslim cab driver and the eccentric members of his father’s former orchestra, the legacy of his father is revealed to him along with a story of his past that was long ago buried. Told with both heart and humor, The Midnight Orchestra presents an endearing tale of redemption, friendship, and the complex history of Moroccan-Jewish life.

“The Midnight Orchestra takes us back to Casablanca to examine the power the city exerts on the imagination. Only this time the story is about Moroccans, both Jews and Muslims, and how the city, its culture and even the waters have shaped their lives.” Atlanta Jewish Times