Sirāt: Cannes-winning film gets first official teaser by Neon ahead of theatrical release

Neon is gearing up to back one of the most critically acclaimed films of the year, Oliver Laxe's Sirāt, which charmed the audience and critics at this year's Cannes Film Festival. The Spanish film took home both the Jury Prize and the Cannes Soundtrack Award and is currently headed straight into the awards season. It will open for a week in New York and Los Angeles on November 14, before expanding nationwide in January.

The film's official synopsis reads,

“A father (Sergi López) and his son arrive at a rave deep in the mountains of southern Morocco. They’re searching for Mar – daughter and sister – who vanished months ago at one of these endless, sleepless parties. Surrounded by electronic music and a raw, unfamiliar sense of freedom, they hand out her photo again and again. Hope is fading but they push through and follow a group of ravers heading to one last party in the desert. As they venture deeper into the burning wilderness, the journey forces them to confront their own limits.”

Before its U.S. debut, Sirāt will continue its festival journey at the Toronto International Film Festival and the New York Film Festival, where it screens in the main slate. French audiences will get their turn on September 3, when Pyramide releases it on more than 200 screens.

A haunting fusion of Sorcerer and Mad Max, Laxe’s desert odyssey is being hailed as a masterwork of vision and raw emotion, the kind of film that stays in your bloodstream long after the music fades.

More details about Sirāt

The film opens with a familiar scene of an electrifying rave in southern Morocco as people dance. We then see two characters, Luis and Esteban, hand out flyers with their daughter and sister Mar’s photographs, hoping someone has seen her. A small group of ravers invites them deeper into the desert, promising leads about another party where she might appear. When soldiers break up the rave and evacuate foreigners, the father and son abandon the convoy, following the ravers into a sun-scorched nowhere.

Further elaborating on the title and its meaning, Laxe told Variety,

"I like the more colloquial meaning of “Sirat,” which is “path” or “way.” It’s a bit like the Tao. The film is a journey, a rite of passage. There’s something of the hero’s journey, this stripped-down, annihilated hero who must look inward. It connects with the traditions of the Grail and legends that come from India and Persia. These stories always have two layers: the physical and the metaphysical."

Produced by Laxe and an all-star lineup including Pedro and Agustín Almodóvar, Esther García, and Oriol Maymó, Sirāt has already proven its power at home. Released by BTeam Pictures in Spain on June 6, it’s remained in the top 15 for nine weeks, selling nearly 400,000 tickets and outperforming last year’s Oscar hopefuls Emilia Pérez and The Substance.