Midwife by trade, motorcyclist by rebellion, and politician by defiance, Sara Shahverdi is a force unlike any her village has seen. In a remote part of northwestern Iran, Sara is the first woman elected to her local council, but it’s after the ballots have been counted that her true revolution begins. Fighting for women’s freedoms, she sparks a fire that stirs admiration, but also doubt — and opposition.
Winner of Sundance’s World Cinema Documentary Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award at Visions du Réel, Cutting Through Rocks is a vérité feat by directors Sara Khaki and Mohammadreza Eyni, filmed over seven years with patient, razor-sharp clarity. The camera walks beside Shahverdi — not to frame her as a martyr, but to illuminate the quiet, daily acts of resistance that define her. What emerges is a landscape where tradition and transformation collide, solidarity can flicker and fade, and the cost of progress is exacted in shadows. This is not just a portrait — it’s a reckoning with the risks of dreaming aloud.
Iran/Netherlands/USA/
Germany/Qatar/Chile/Canada
2025
In Azeri Turkish and Farsi with English subtitles
Sexual violence, child abuse, gender or sexual discrimination, domestic violence
Indigenous & Community Access
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Credits & Director
Executive Producer
Meadow Fund, Rebecca Lichtenfeld, Judith Helfand, Julie Parker Benello, Sheila Nevins
Producer
Mohammadreza Eyni, Sara Khaki
Cinematography
Mohammadreza Eyni
Editor
Sara Khaki, Mohammadreza Eyni
Original Music
Karim Sebastian Elias
Sara Khaki سارا خاکی
Sara Khaki is a director, producer, and editor with a dedication to stories about gender equity. Her co-directed film, Our Iranian Lockdown (2020), was nominated for an IDA Award, and she contributed to the Emmy-nominated Netflix Original documentary feature Convergence (2022). A Chicken & Egg Films and Sundance alumni, Sara’s 2025 documentary Cutting Through Rocks won the Grand Jury Award in the World Cinema Documentary category at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. She is a co-founder of Gandom Films Production L.L.C., a US-based company that collaborates with top industry professionals to create socially engaging films.
Filmography: Facing the Mirror (2012); Our Iranian Lockdown (2020)
Mohammadreza Eyni محمدرضا عینی
Mohammadreza Eyni is a director, producer, and cinematographer whose cinematic approach bridges boundaries and elevates underrepresented voices. A co-founder of Gandom Films Production L.L.C., Mohammadreza has produced and directed films that include the co-directed short Our Iranian Lockdown (2020), which was nominated for an IDA Award. Eyni is a 2021 Firelight Media fellow, 2020 Sundance Institute Documentary Fund grantee, and Tribeca Film Institute alum. His co-directed feature Cutting Through Rocks won the Grand Jury Award in the World Cinema Documentary category at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival.
Filmography: The Friend’s House (2019); Our Iranian Lockdown (2020)
Insights
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Image: © The New York Times