The 16th Khouribga African Film Festival (FCAK), organised from 22 June to 29 July, paid a posthumous tribute on Saturday to the late Mohamed Dahane, a great national figure of film criticism and university professor of sociology who played an important role within the National Federation of Film Clubs.

Mohamed Dahane passed away in Tangier on 19 February 2013 following a heart attack at the age of 62. Known as a true film militant, known and recognised by the generations of the 70s and 80s, he rubbed shoulders with the world of cinema as a "sworn" critic whose analyses have been appreciated by cinephiles for decades.

During the opening ceremony of the FCAK, the former president of Moroccan film clubs, Ait Omar El Mokhtar, delivered a poignant testimony: "I have never been as afraid as I am now to speak about Mohamed Dahane who was present here, last year, as president of the jury; today, only his soul is present. Some do not know the value and pride he felt in being president of the jury of the 15th edition of the FCAK. Words and their meanings cannot suffice to do justice to this man. When we heard the bad news of his passing on 19 February, no one could believe their ears. In the last three months before his death, writing became his first and last bet to continue living, living a life full of suffering and sadness. His writings began to speak of death, of his deceased friends. His article 'The curve of destiny' bears witness to this." Thus, he recalled the human qualities of the late, his strong presence, his intellectual and cultural value, and his contributions through his writings and publications in several fields, as well as his educational and scientific role as a research professor at the Mohammed V Faculty of Rabat.

Presided over by the Burkinabe Fadika Krama Lanca, the jury includes Gabonese filmmaker Paul Mouketa, Beninese Dorothée Dognon, and Moroccans Lahcen Zainoun, Hanane Fadili, and Sanae Alaoui.

During this evening, the public watched the screening of the Moroccan feature film "Boulanoir" by Hamid Zoughi, competing for the Ousmane Sembene grand prize.