MARRAKECH, Morocco: The Marrakech International Film Festival bestowed its top prize Friday on “Happy Holidays,” a Palestinian drama set in Israel whose screenplay won an award at the Venice Film Festival in September.
The film, directed by Scandar Copti, follows Israeli and Palestinian characters facing familial and societal pressures in present-day Haifa and stars both professional and non-professional actors. It is the first Palestinian film to win Marrakech’s Etoile D’Or award.