No one can prepare you for the harsh experience of watching Sirat, Spain’s nominee for Best International Feature Film.
In Sirat, Spanish director Óliver Laxe brings to the screen the story of Luis and Esteban, a father and son who arrive at a rave in the mountains of southern Morocco in search of Mar, their daughter and sister, who disappeared months earlier. Hoping to find the missing girl among these endless, nocturnal parties, they spend hours showing her picture, while upbeat electronic music drowns out their voices.
Desperate, they decide to follow a group of ravers to one final gathering in the Saghro Desert, a remote, clandestine location at the end of a long road trip. Luis and Esteban embark on this journey, immersing themselves in the harsh Moroccan landscape, ultimately risking everything along the way.
Nominated for Best International Feature Film in 2026, Sirat unfolds with a hypnotic rhythm, where the viewer quickly learns that nothing can be trusted, creating a powerful atmosphere of despair and uncertainty. When we discover that a global armed conflict has broken out, threatening the group’s safety, every step becomes charged with electrifying tension.
After filming in Spain for a month, Laxe, who speaks Arabic and has deep ties to Moroccan culture, chose to continue shooting in Morocco, primarily in the southeastern desert. Exposed to the mercy of the heat, sand, and wind, the landscape becomes a character in its own right, its vastness underscoring the fragility of human existence.
Rambla de Barrachina, Spain
Photo by @thornbury_picturehouseRambla de Barrachina, described by Óliver Laxe as “chiseled by the gods,” served as the setting for the film’s opening rave, standing in for Morocco with its ochre-colored soil, arid vegetation, and faint air currents carrying dry branches. The Spanish region of Teruel could well be considered a kind of Sahara of cinema, with landscapes shaped by erosion, dry ravines, and an otherworldly atmosphere.
As a natural amphitheater, Rambla de Barrachina is typically defined by silence and stillness. In Sirat, however, its corners are filled with thunderous music, creating a striking contrast with the tranquility visitors usually experience here. Located just five kilometers from the city of Teruel, the site is accessible by car, though the best way to explore it is on foot. If you ever lose your sense of direction, simply look up and head toward the reddish rock formations that dominate the landscape.
Tagounsta Pass, Morocco
Photo by @thornbury_picturehouseThe pivotal mountaintop road scene in Sirat was filmed at Tagounsta Pass, a route built by the French Legion in the 1920s during their campaigns against Berber tribes. Located in the Atlas Mountains, near Amellago and Errachidia, the pass features a distinctive tunnel that spirals through the mountain. From the edge of the cliff, the views open eastward across the Plain d’Amane toward Rich, offering dramatic panoramas.
Desert of Haroun, Morocco
Photo by @neonratedThe final, cathartic scene, once again driven by the pulse of electronic music, was filmed in the desert of Haroun, near Erfoud, far from the region’s main tourist routes. The landscape is completely arid, its surface covered in pale, almost salt-like sand, creating an abstract atmosphere in which the characters appear as negligible points within an immense, vast space.
Often referred to as the “Door to the Sahara,” Erfoud serves as a popular getaway to the Sahara Desert, particularly to the dunes of Erg Chebbi. Yet it is more than just a stop along the way: Erfoud is a picturesque oasis with a rich history, vibrant gastronomy, and notable archaeological heritage.
Gara Medouar, Morocco
Photo by @feelgood_entertainmentThe film closes with the image of an endless train, filled with people of all ages, genders, and ethnicities, heading toward the horizon, with nothing but desert in the distance. This sequence was shot on a real train in Gara Medouar – popularly known as the “Portuguese Prison” – an impressive horseshoe-shaped geological formation once used as a fortified site, historically associated with water storage and the holding of slaves.
