You can book with us your Ouarzazate tour guide to discover the city of Ouarzazate. The Cinema Museum is located at the opposite side of Taourirt Kasbah in Ouarzazate, on the eastern side of Morocco. The museum is a display of works of art that have been included in the manufacture of some historical films made here. The museum impresses its visitors with the large statues and decorations especially Pharaonic, made of plaster and wood. The museum also contains huge halls, the most important one used in the scene of King Solomon. The museum has a large collection of photographic equipment, some of which was made of coal and old clothes alongside the spears and shields made of leather, iron, and gypsum.
Most of the movies filmed here were during the 1990s, most of them about Jesus and the Prophet Yusuf peace be upon them.
Although the place might not considered scientifically a museum. But it is a special place to safeguard the city memory in the production of historical films.
Taourirt Kasbah is considered to be the only historical building in the center of Ouarzazate city, it was a palace of the Pacha Thami Glaoui ‘Lords of the Atlas’– who controlled access to the southern trade routes in the late 19th and early 20th century.
Besides the historical significance, this Kasbah presents an intricate traditional architecture that highly represents the Saharian architectural style of Morocco.
At one point in the 1930s, Kasbah Taourirt was considered the largest Kasbah in Morocco and today is classified as a historical monument giving tribute to the Glaoui.
Inside the Kasbah, you’ll find a maze of irregularly sized rooms with dozens of stairwells leading to even more mysterious rooms and spaces lit up by low windows. Some of the larger rooms have plasterwork decoration featuring floral patterns that contrast the plain white walls.
Since many of the parts of the Kasbah have fallen into decline, the areas open to visits are the UNESCO restored parts, which account for the quarters of the family and extended relatives.
Aït Benhaddou Kasbah site amidst a valley near the foothills of the Atlas Mountains, just thirty-two miles from Ouarzazate, the film capital of Morocco. Ouarzazate first came into the international spotlight with the Hollywood film Lawrence of Arabia; Aït Benhaddou made a feature appearance in this film. Orson Welles used it as a location for Sodome and Gomorrah; and for Jesus of Nazareth the whole lower part of the village was rebuilt.
Since then many famous directors have followed in his footsteps to exploit the magnificent scenery of Ouarzazate. International blockbusters shot there in recent years include: the French version of Cleopatra, Bertolucci’s Sheltering Sky, Scorsese’s Kundun, Gillies MacKannon’s Hideous Kinky, Ridley Scott’s Gladiator, Black Hawke Down, Oliver Stone’s Alexander The Great, Ridley Scott’s Kingdom of Heaven, and Penelope Cruz’s Sahara.
Historically, traders carrying spices, slaves, and gold on the Sahara Trade Route passed by Aït Benhaddou and its Ksours on their way to Timbuktu or the Western Sahara. Today, the usage of this old trade route is fading and as a result many Kasbahs along it have turned into relics. With your tour guide you will have chance to explore this beautiful archeological site