TORONTO – Spiritually minded, 6-foot-6-inch-tall French-born Galician director Oliver Lax knows his new film, “Sirat,” has earned him a reputation.
“When I’m on the plane and things are going wrong, I say, “Come on, you’re the director of ‘Seerat’. You can’t be afraid,” Lax, 41, says with a laugh.
Since its award-winning debut at the Cannes Film Festival, “Seerat” has been one of the most talked-about films of the year. It is about a father who is searching for his teenage daughter along with his 12-year-old son. After arriving at a remote rave in southern Morocco, where they had no luck, they parted ways with a small caravan of ravers that traveled across a desert expanse.
A fundamental beat is heard “Sirat,” Which turns into an existential journey through a near apocalypse. References to World War III are made on the radio, and the arid landscape where water is scarce reflects the effects of climate change. “Seerat”, which means “path” or “way” in Arabic, is unusually candid about the film’s characters and what the future holds for us.
To qualify for the Oscars, “Sirat” began a week of screenings in select theaters on Friday, where it is Spain’s presentation. The Neon release, which will hit wide theaters in early 2026, has already been a box-office hit in Spain and France, drawing comparisons to both “The Wages of Fear” and “Mad Max.” Not everyone has gone along with “Seerat’s” intense journey, but it has, undoubtedly, hit a nerve.
Lax says, “For me, cinema is not about ‘I like this’ or ‘I don’t like this’.” “My objective is: Did this move something?”
During a stop at the Toronto International Film Festival earlier this fall, Lax — a lean and soulful presence who might have been a romance cover model if he weren’t so philosophical — met with The Associated Press to talk about the spiritual underpinnings of “Sir” and why filmmaking may never be the same again.
LAXE: The main objective was to provoke the viewer to look inside. I think that’s the only issue we have. If you put all audiovisual productions in one box, I can say that 98% of these productions are designed for destruction. I think as humans we need to look within ourselves. Do you know, this is the only way for people to be truly free and independent? And sometimes looking inside reveals that what we see is not good. “Seerat” is a rite of passage.
Luxe: Totally. I think the world we’re headed towards will be like this: Life will push us to our limits. Life will ask us what it means to be human. We don’t really need to be intuitive to know that with climate change and new technology, artificial intelligence, the question is: What is it to be a human being? What I’m reading about psychiatry is that we are all broken. We have nothing to do with this wound, and that is why we have more fear, more pain. I’m really optimistic for the future. It will be hard, but we will be forced to look within.
Laxey: Yes, although I don’t want to seem too patriarchal. The pain of the wound is so severe that it is difficult to bear it. That’s why we need destruction. My full mercy to all of us. We do what we can. But, yes, I think it’s time to look inward. I didn’t want to make a film.
Laxey: No, I think the challenges an artist faces are different than before. So I am happy. Cannes was a test for film. People tell me: “It’s not just a movie. It’s a celebration.” I think this is how a film should be. To change yourself. Look at the ancient Greeks. They did not go to the theater to be entertained. They don’t meet and have an aperitif followed by dinner. It was a war. They were going to the theater to purify their ghosts in order to save society by using the things they don’t do in life.
LAX: I started working on the images for “Serat” in 2011. This was after the release of my first feature film, a film I made with my neighbors in Tangiers with 20,000 euros. I started living in a palm grove in the south. Images also came from my trip to Senegal and Mauritania. There’s just something about the desert and mountains of Morocco. It’s a wounded scenario. You’re considering the formation of the planet, all the erosion, all the layers. I like this scenario because you feel small. This doesn’t hurt you. it’s opposite. It gives you humility. I am a human being who seeks excellence.
Laxey: I like to go to my limits. I think that’s what art, spirited culture and spirituality are about, to cross the minefields, to take a path where you don’t know where you’re going. All my shoots are really extreme, probably because I’m crazy about images. This was one of my easiest shoots. Writers, we are our films’ worst enemies. We need to stop at the right time. We want to say a lot of things, so we don’t provoke. We destroy the images. The first images I developed were captured while in relationship with other people, while dancing on the dance floor. The thing is to preserve these images that are wild and raw, and project them through the writing process, the preproduction process, and the shooting, so that they get to the end of the process, and they are still alive.
Laxey: I have to tell you, I was scared. My practice is always about my intention. The main thing is inside how you will receive your artistic gesture and all the results. When I was doing this film, the reaction was really tough. For example, a friend told me, “We don’t want people to suffer.” So obviously you have doubts. You ask yourself: Who am I working for? But you keep going. Obviously I was scared but I knew I had to jump into the ditch. I knew I had to cross my own mine. Some people get moved after watching the film. They get scared. But they tell me that when they reach home, they feel a kind of revival. Hopefully it feels like they feel more life.
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