Where Was Sirat Filmed? The Desert Raves and Mountain Roads of Morocco

"I started with this idea of making a film in the desert with trucks driving fast through the sand. I always start with images. Art is about going through the limit. That's how I do my job. It has to be difficult to achieve beauty. In a tree, the good fruit are never in reach of your hand. You have to climb the tree and it's risky to climb the tree, but you will have very good views from the top."

"These two spaces are perfect for Sirāt because in the mountains are a place for existentialism. You ask yourself how small you are, about your mission in life. I mean, And the response to that existentialism is to surrender. The desert is a place for surrendering."

Óliver Laxe conceived Sirāt in 2011 while living in Morocco, beginning with visual imagery of trucks driving through desert sand. The film follows a father searching for his missing daughter at a remote rave, accompanied by his young son and dog, who join ravers on a journey across the Sahara Desert. Production occurred from May to July 2024 in Spain and Morocco during extreme heat. Laxe deliberately chose challenging conditions, believing difficulty achieves beauty. The narrative alternates between the Sahara and Atlas Mountains, with mountains representing existential questioning about human insignificance and life's purpose, while the desert symbolizes surrender. Laxe's decade-long residence in Morocco enabled authentic location scouting through personal exploration and Google Maps.

Read at Conde Nast Traveler