While most students at Villanova are looking forward to heading home for the upcoming Fall Break, seeing family and sleeping in their own beds again, one group on campus is gearing up for an action-packed trip across the Atlantic Ocean. Every year, Villanova’s Social Justice Documentary course creates a film company, identifies a community somewhere around the world and travels there to learn more about their stories, struggles and amplify their voices. This year’s choice was a small town in southern Morocco, and for 14 days the class company, Out of Bounds Productions, will connect with and film the people of Talinin Commune Tamaloukt.
“In our crew of 17, we have a documentary team of two directors, two directors of photography, two sound [directors], as well as our multi-media team,” producer Natalie Zickel said. She is in her second year of this class.
While the documentary is set to be around 30 minutes long and is the main project, the multi-media team will also focus on an additional approach.
“They’ll produce five to seven short videos over the course of the two weeks,” Zickel said. “Meeting with smaller organizations, capturing different stories about Morocco that kind of broaden the scope of our story that don’t make it into our documentary.”
Last year’s documentary was filmed in the Philippines, and historically the class’ professor and executive producer, Hezekiah Lewis, has taken charge of choosing where each community will be. This year, things looked a little different.
“Because me and my co-producers, Natalie and Sol, were very involved with the Philippines, we got to be part of the decision making process this time around,” producer Daniel Kee said. “A Villanova [alum] who graduated last year, Kenza Idrissi-Janati, wrote her final thesis on migration and carrier women in Morocco, and that was originally where the idea for Morocco started. After developing our story a lot further, we eventually really fell in love with the story in the south, about indigeneity and the preservation of culture. It’s also convenient because Kenza is from the south [of Morocco].”
Talinin Commune Tamaloukt, the specific town where the company is headed, is rooted in indigenous Amazigh culture and currently dealing with an unhealthy water crisis.
“People are walking four kilometers a day to get water from a well that isn’t really guaranteed,” director Katelyn Van Mater said. “The water is salty, it hasn’t been tested, there are a lot of things to explore there.”
As a result, people are leaving the community in search of better living conditions, putting the Amazigh culture and traditions in peril.
It’s important to note that the actual making of the documentary is only half of the class. Alongside filming and post-production, the company is tasked with developing a sustainable initiative that supports the Talinin Commune Tamaloukt community.
“Right now we’re in the process of trying to meet with activists around indigenous rights in Morocco,” Van Mater said.
The company has some ideas already floating, and will hopefully gain more knowledge about how to combat the water crisis this community is facing while on their trip.
“We’re also in conversation with the engineering school and [Idrissi-Janati]’s brother, as well, to build a more sustainable water source for them to gather clean water from,” Zickel said. “Currently, their system breaks every 10 days and then it takes 20 days to fix, so it’s something that’s not reliable and such a crucial, natural resource that needs to be accessible. That’s something we really want to work on and raise money after and use our documentary to share and support the community.”
Getting to know the people and the issues they deal with reflects what a lot of the members of the Out of Bounds film company want to get out of the course: a journey of introspection and a chance to examine your relationship with social justice and responsibility.
“Without a mindset of further social justice and creating a sustainable relationship with our collaborators, you’re not getting the full experience of this course,” Kee said. “I think that caused me to grow so much more personally, with confidence in myself, how I view my own privilege and how I view the world.”
As the departure date approaches, the reality of the long-anticipated trip is setting in. Co-director, senior Olivia Bancel, shared her excitement for the documentary filming, the result of extensive preparation.
“It feels so surreal to say that we’re leaving on Friday,” Bancel said. “I’ve been looking at this date on the calendar for so long and I can’t believe the day is finally here. For the first time, im feeling excited more than any other emotion. I’m still nervous, of course, but I’m feeling ready to start this process and I’m so excited for all that we’ll learn during the two weeks of production in Morocco.”
As the days count down to their flight taking off, Villanovans can follow along on the company’s journey with its Instagram, @outofbounds_productions. The group’s hard work and talent will be showcased with the film’s premiere in the Mullen Center on April 30, 2026.
