Bakhtiyar Panjeei, Osveh Sadeghi, Maryam Boubani
Iran
2023
In Kurdish (Sorani) with English subtitles
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Credits & Director
Producer
Payam Kurdistani, Bahman Rezaei
Screenwriter
Payam Kurdistani
Cinematography
Behrouz Badrouj
Editor
Hamid Najafiradi
Production Design
Amin Jahani
Payam Kurdistani
Payam Kurdistani is a Tehran-based independent filmmaker originally from Iranian Kurdistan. He’s a classic-movie enthusiast but also has a liking for experimentation with cinematic form. His long familiarity with fiction, which includes writing short stories since he was a teenager, has shaped him as a director who mostly prefers to adapt from literature. Payam considers himself a part of Kurdish cinema and is on a quest to bring a fresh expression to it — one that breaks with the naturalist, rural style characterizing Kurdish film and resonates more with an international audience.
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