MIT / French Library Author series presents, Ciné Club: Salvation Army by Abdellah Taïa

— Special screening in the presence of the director

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Join us for a rare evening with Moroccan-born writer and filmmaker Abdellah Taïa, who will be present to introduce and discuss his award-winning debut feature Salvation Army, adapted from his acclaimed eponymous autobiographical novel. With a poetic yet honest eye, Taïa tells the story of a young man navigating family, desire, and exile, from the crowded streets of Morocco to the disorienting freedom of Europe.

Structured in two movements; first as a teenager in Salé, where silence and violence rule within a large family, and later as a student in Geneva, Salvation Army strips away conventional dialogue to let glances, gestures, and visual spaces speak.

The film’s striking imagery comes from the collaboration with acclaimed cinematographer Agnès Godard (Chocolat, Beau Travail), best known for her work on Claire Denis’s postcolonial, sexually complex films. Taïa’s cinematic style draws inspiration from both European art cinema and the Egyptian films of Youssef Chahine, blending cultural legacies into a visually sophisticated, emotionally resonant work.

Premiering at the Venice Film Festival and TIFF, Salvation Army went on to win the Grand Prix at the Angers European First Film Festival and the Sundance Institute Global Filmmaking Award.

Following the screening, Abdellah Taïa will take part in a discussion with the audience. This is a unique opportunity to engage directly with one of the most original voices in contemporary French-language literature and cinema.

Want to read the novel before the screening? Abdellah Taïa’s Salvation Army is available in English from MIT Press. You can order your copy directly here.