For this 01:38 film, the director behind "Sheitan" had his screenplay, co-written with Ladj Ly ("Les Misérables"), interpreted by actors with almost no cinematographic experience, in order to imbue his story with "reality".

Mainly shot in Clichy-sous-Bois and Montfermeil, headquarters of the Kourtrajmé collective, the feature film is inspired by a true story.

"It's mostly contemporary stories that inspire me, and this one mixes a lot of elements that tell the story of our time," the 42-year-old filmmaker told AFP.

At 14, Ali, a teenager adrift, is sent back by his mother to the village where she comes from, in Mali, so that he can be raised "in tradition and faith" by following religious courses at the Koranic school.

He returned ten years later to the neighborhood of his childhood, in Montfermeil, where he faced the full force of the lack of professional prospects, before becoming the new imam of the neighborhood, capitalizing on his studies of Islamology.

Living with the times, he skillfully handles social networks and takes advantage of his sermons to spread a "peaceful" image of Islam, a religion "at the heart of all debates".

But the scenario turns into a nightmare when the "young imam" naively falls into the trap of a group of crooks issuing fraudulent visas for a pilgrimage to Mecca, which Ali wanted to organize for residents of the neighborhood who had "saved their whole lives for this trip".

"Get as far away from clichés as possible"

"I wanted to deal with these pilgrimage scams, these stories that are almost never talked about because they mostly affect the elderly," says Kim Chapiron.

"Beyond that, I also aimed to film the Muslim religion by moving as far as possible away from clichés, stereotypes and caricatures, which suffocate us when we talk about this subject," he adds.

Director Kim Chapiron (l) and actor Abdulah Sissoko, April 18, 2023 in Paris © JULIEN DE ROSA / AFP

To be preserved from these evils, the filmmaker has his remedy: entrust the roles to actors who have a life close to that of the characters they embody.

"I myself was sent by my parents to the madrassa when I was a teenager to study the Koran," Abdulah Sissoko, who plays Imam Ali, told AFP.

"At the time, I resented them a lot, but today I thank them. Perhaps, without this experience, I would not have been selected for the role, "adds the one who was trained in theater at the renowned Cours Simon but had never had experience on the big screen.

This is part of the philosophy of the Kourtrajmé collective, which works to put a foot in the stirrup to talents from disadvantaged backgrounds through the eponymous schools, free and without qualification condition, located in Montfermeil, Marseille, Dakar and soon in the Caribbean.

Several actors in the film were trained at the Kourtrajmé School, including Moussa Cissé, who plays the character of Corona, the imam's close cousin.

The others were found "on the job". "I always use reality as an ingredient in my films because it allows me to touch the hearts of the spectators directly," explains Kim Chapiron. "The +wild casting+, as they say, that's always how I work."

© 2023 AFP