The urge to explore the unknown is a fascinating theme. Atlantic. is an exquisitely shot, poetically existentialist film, in which this desire is visualised. The 32-year old fisherman Fettah (pronounced: Efta) decides to travel from Morocco to Europe illegally… on his surfboard. Through flashbacks, his motives for undertaking this hard and lonely journey across the Atlantic Ocean are revealed.
Every summer crowds of European tourists flood his small home-town of Moulay Bouzarqtuone on the Atlantic coast to enjoy a surfing holiday. The goings on of these European surfers awaken a longing in him to see the other side of the waves. And when the stunning Alexandra emerges from among the European tourists his fantasies know no bounds. The presence of the blond beauty forces Fettah to acknowledge just how many of life’s options are closed to him. His response is an heroic attempt to storm the walls of his prison. He packs his backpack and surfboard and sets off on an epic journey to Europe. In the process he surfs 300 miles on the open sea to evade the military zone that separates Africa from Europe. The outcome is a stunning visual spectacle. But will it result in the fulfilment of Fettah’s dreams and longings?