Rachid Djaïdani

Having pursued high-level English boxing for many years Rachid Djaïdani owes his determination to this noble art.

A trained mason and plasterer-drywaller, he is the author of three novels published by Éditions du Seuil: Boumkoeur (1999), Mon nerf (2004), and Viscéral (2007).

As an actor, he spent five years with Peter Brook’s company, performing in Hamlet, The Suit, and Tierno Bokar (international tours). On stage, he developed a taste for directing.

He went on to make numerous documentaries: Une heure avant la datte (ARTE web series), Quinquennats (26 min., Canal+), Sur ma ligne (49 min., L’ACID), Encré (73 min., Cinéma du Réel), and La Ligne brune (26 min., Les Pépites du Cinéma), all self-produced.

After nine years of filming, he completed his first feature film, Rengaine (2012), which was nominated for the César Award for Best First Film and selected for the Directors’ Fortnight at Cannes. He returned to Cannes in 2016 to present his second feature, Tour de France, starring Gérard Depardieu, also selected for the Directors’ Fortnight.

In 2022, Rachid completed Xeurbo, his latest screenplay… followed by Dinguerie, which he developed at Le Groupe Ouest as part of the Annual Selection.

Dinguerie

Sélection Annuelle 2022

Chico (25), a young professional boxer, is trained by his father Nikos (57), a tough dockworker. Together, they dream of winning the French championship title. But Nikos couldn’t foresee the chaos he would unleash in his son’s life by hiring Marvin (26), a former convict turned sparring partner.