Carthage Film Festival

The Carthage Film Festival (Journées cinématographiques de Carthage, or JCC) is a film festival that takes place in Tunis. Created in 1966, it is to date the oldest event of its kind still active in Africa. Initially biennial alternating with the Carthage Theatre Festival, it became annual in 2014. A directing committee chaired by the Tunisian Ministry of Culture joined together with professionals of the cinema industry is in charge of the organization.

The Carthage Film Festival has been designed as a film festival engaged in the cause of African and Arab countries and enhancing the South cinema in general.

The main prize awarded is the Golden Tanit named after the Phoenician goddess Tanit. Opening and closing ceremonies are held in the Municipal Theater of Tunis.

Conceived by filmmaker Tahar Cheriaa and officially launched in 1966 by the Tunisian Minister of Culture, Chedli Klibi, this event, the first of its kind in the Arab world, is primarily intended to highlight the sub-Saharan African and Arab cinema, creating bridges of dialogue between North and South and offering a meeting between filmmakers and moviegoers of all sides. Thus Klibi said:

We first hope a dialogue. A dialogue, frank, lucid, without ulterior motives. But we are sure that such a dialogue can only lead to a better mutual understanding between Africans and Europeans, among the southern Mediterranean and the Northern Mediterranean.

Many big names of African and Arab cinema received awards from Carthage before being recognized elsewhere, from the Senegalese Sembene Ousmane (Grand Prize 1966) through the Egyptian Youssef Chahine (Grand Prize 1970) and the Malian Souleymane Cissé (Grand Prize 1982), the Palestinian Michel Khleifi (Grand Prize 1988), Tunisians Nouri Bouzid, Ferid Boughedir, and Moufida Tlatli (Grand Prize 1986, 1990, 1994), the Syrian Mohammad Malas (Grand Prize 1992) to the Algerian Merzak Allouache (Grand Prize 1996).

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