Canadian Premiere
Joonam (a ubiquitous Persian term of endearment, literally, “My life/my dear”, which can be ascribed to anything touching, funny, sad or sweet) is a beautiful and intimate film about home and exile. Navigating barriers of language and culture, Sierra Urich embarks on a personal quest to make sense of her mixed-race, Iranian identity. While Sierra struggles with Farsi, her grandmother, Behjat, speaks in broken English. By translating, Sierra’s mother, Mitra, becomes the bridge between the two generations; she’s also representative of that generation of Iranian women who paid the price of revolution more than any other, and of those who immigrated for a better future for their children. Urich’s delightful documentary paints a well-constructed, deeply moving and sometimes disarmingly humorous portrait of three generations of women and their complex relationship to an Iran of the past. Just like the word, Joonam is both simple and complex; it will make you laugh out loud and bring tears to your eyes.
USA
2023
Focus
In English and Farsi with English subtitles
Book Tickets
Indigenous & Community Access
Indigenous Access Tickets Community Access Tickets Ticket Donation Requests
Credits
Executive Producer
Maida Lynn, Ruth Ann Harnisch, Bill Harnisch
Producer
Keith Wilson, Sierra Urich
Cinematography
Sierra Urich
Editor
Sierra Urich
Director
Sierra Urich
Sierra Urich is a Persian-American interdisciplinary visual artist and filmmaker based in Vermont. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Illustration and Film from the Rhode Island School of Design in 2013. She was an artist-in-residence at The Banff Centre for the Arts 2017, Sundance Nonfiction Directors Fellow 2018, and Points North Fellow 2018, Firelight Doc Lab Fellow 2021, and Chicken & Egg Eggcelerator Lab Fellow 2022. Joonam is her first feature film.
Missing VIFF? Check Out What's Playing at the VIFF Centre
La Bola Negra
A big, old-school historical melodrama gets a thrillingly modern, queer makeover from Spanish duo Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi, who artfully juggle three gay protagonists across stories set in 1932, 1937, and 2017. Winner: Best Director, Cannes. Screening on 35mm.
The 39 Steps
In our new film studies series, FRAMEWORK, film scholar Michael van den Bos explores the work of Alfred Hitchcock, across four monochrome masterworks. This week: The 39 Steps (1935), a witty and fast-moving spy thriller from Hitchcock's English period.
The Great McGinty
Preston Sturges' first film as writer-director is an omnivorous satire on endemic political corruption, the tale of a tramp who gets his entry into politics by casting 37 votes for mayor at $2 a pop. Eventually he'll be on the ticket himself...
To Be Or Not To Be
Strange but true: one of the greatest comedies of Hollywood's golden era was inspired by Hitler's annexation of Poland in 1938. Jack Benny is the renowned theatre actor whose performance of Hamlet is interrupted by the Germans.
The History of Concrete
After attending a workshop on pitching saccharine Hallmark movies, John Wilson tries to apply all the same best practices to his documentary about concrete. Frequently absurd and endlessly entertaining detours, asides, and digressions ensue.
The Mad Dog of Europe
The story of an unmade screenplay from the writer of Citizen Kane. In 1932, Herman Mankiewicz wrote a film that foretold the persecution of the Jews and the war in Europe. But Hollywood wouldn't take the risk and The Mad Dog of Europe was never made.