ABOUT

Akim El Ouardi

Filmmaker / Editor / Colorist / Digital Imaging Technician

Conscious minimalism is a key aspect in my life and in everything I create. Realizing how resource-intensive and polluting the film industry can be, I decided to implement a stripped-down guerilla approach into my filmmaking. I’m deeply convinced that a lot can be done with very little and that this isn’t a limitation but a gateway to new solutions.

When I approach a project, my first question is “how can I achieve this without…?” whether it’s by reducing crew size, using minimal equipment and locations, or operating with little to no budget. This approach demands constant improvisation—and that’s where the magic happens. I embrace the rawness that emerges when you stop trying to control every variable and start creating with uncertainty.

This philosophy led me to analog film—a medium that embodies everything I believe about minimalist filmmaking. Super8 and 16mm cameras are beautifully simple machines that barely need electrical power, and their mechanical noise makes sound recording difficult, reducing the crew to only my subjects and me. There’s no playback, no safety net—just pure trust in the moment and what I’ve captured.

What I find equally compelling is the slowness that follows : Weeks pass between shooting and seeing the results, creating space for anticipation and reflection. In the darkroom, physically manipulating each roll makes me feel like a magician—images slowly emerging from chemical baths. This tactile process feels like the opposite of digital filmmaking—the material is finite, each frame is unique, each choice is irreversible, and the imperfections of the shoot and the medium become integral to the story.

For a deeper dive into my analog practice, read my interview with POOL TanzFilmFestival.

Growing up with dual nationality in Luxembourg’s multicultural landscape sparked my search for a universal language—one that transcends words and borders. This quest led me to focus on Screendance, a film genre where movement becomes the primary storyteller—the body’s universal vocabulary speaks directly to our subconscious, bypassing both linguistic and intellectual barriers.

Music, equally universal in its reach, has always been a major catalyst for my visual ideas. Looking back at my earliest video experiments from the mid-2000s, they were all music and movement combinations—essentially homemade music videos using found footage.

Around the same time I started DJing, experiencing firsthand how rhythm becomes physical expression—and witnessing the liberating power of dance. On countless occasions, I’ve seen how music dissolves barriers, how movement connects strangers, how dance becomes a form of freedom that transcends any social boundaries.