School of Hope

Set in the arid expanse east of Morocco's Atlas Mountains, a landscape once nourished by seasonal rains and snow now endures an unrelenting drought. Barely a blade of grass remains as families trek miles on foot to draw water from a muddy hole in the ground. Yet the children willingly ride donkeys and bicycles or walk across rocky terrain to reach a clay-built 'school of hope.' Over more than three years, SCHOOL OF HOPE follows both the students and the teachers of the Oulad Boukais Tribe's community school, spotlighting Mohamed, Miloud, Fatima, and their classmates as they respond with playful joy to their altruistic young teacher, Mohamed. Each child faces individual obstacles—supporting aging parents; navigating restrictions from relatives rooted in traditional gender roles—while the young teacher makes do in a house without electricity or running water.