Federation Entertainment has come on board leading Moroccan filmmaker Laila Marrakchi’s “Casa Girls,” a series about four twentysomething single women living in Casablanca.
“Casa Girl” is being developed by Lauraine Heftler and Michael Gentile’s The Film, whose credits include Julie Delpy’s films and upcoming series “On The Verge” (working title). Federation Entertainment will be co-producing the series, on top of handling International sales, and is presenting the project as part of Series Mania’s virtual co-production forum.
The comedy-drama series will follow Kenzo, a young woman who’s been living in Paris for 10 years and returns to her homeland in Casablanca to get over a bad breakup. But instead of finding the comfort and peace she wished for, Kenza discovers that her parents have gone broke. Forced to take a small job, she starts working as a photographer for a cheeky wedding planner who becomes her friend, along with two other twentysomething girls from different backgrounds.
Marrakchi, who is developing the script in collaboration with Stephanie Duvivier and Dorothee Lachaud, cited “Girls” as an inspiration for “Casa Girls,” and said she had the idea of doing it after making a documentary on the issue of sex in Morocco that led her to interview many young people.
Federation Entertainment’s founder Pascal Breton described Marrakchi, whose credits include the popular films “Rock the Casbah” and “Marock,” as “one of modern Morocco’s strongest advocates for women.”
“‘Casa Girls’ is a perfect vehicle for Laila to portray the lighter side of a very serious issue, and Federation is thrilled to support such a talented—and essential—project,” said Breton, adding that the series certainly “resonate with women all over France and Europe, not to mention Morocco.”
In both “Rock the Casbah” and “Marock,” Marrakchi dealt with sexual taboos, cultural and religious values, patriarchy and female emancipation in Morocco. “Rock the Casbah” indeed explored the journey of an actress who’s been living in New York who returns home to Tangier, in Morocco, for the funerals of her father and clashes with the patriarchal rules of her family. In “Marock,” meanwhile, Marrakchi explored a forbidden love between a Muslim girl and a Jewish young man. The two movies struck a chord with Moroccan audiences and traveled to many countries.
Besides her film credits, Marrakchi has also directed episodes of the hit spy thriller series “The Bureau,” and wrapped a few months ago the shoot of two episodes of Damien Chazelle’s anticipated Netflix series “The Eddy.”
Federation Entertainment, one of Europe’s most successful and prolific TV co-production and distribution banner, has been selling series around the world, from “The Bureau” to “Bad Banks.”