Dear colleagues in the short film industry, your life is precious to us. You are the future of Iran’s culture and cinema. Considering the Covid-19 crisis, The Iranian Short Film Association asks short filmmakers and production crews to stop the production of any ongoing projects until the danger has passed. The risk of illness and death is severe, and undoubtedly there’s nothing more paramount than human lives. The coronavirus is unknown and deadly; numbers don’t lie. In our country’s current conditions, it is necessary to quickly and urgently close down non-essential businesses and operations. Unfortunately, some producers have not taken these warnings seriously and are still keeping up the production. It must be considered that the health and safety of any production crew is the responsibility of the producers. The festival dates in all countries have been postponed, and it’s inevitable that any obligations to organizations must be rescheduled and postponed as well. If needed, the board will take measures to negotiate deferrals with these organizations during this crisis to provide the necessary support for filmmakers.
Moreover, the House of Cinema has stated that their Crisis Management Taskforce is available and ready to support its members.
Iranian Short Film Association
Masoud Amini Tirani On the Elimination of a Number of Short Films From the Tehran Film Festival
This year, several short films picked by the selection committee of the 35th Tehran Film Festival, have not been granted screening permits from the Inspection and Grading Board of the Cinema Organization of Iran. I know where these inspectors “got the right” to do such a thing. They’re selected and appointed by the Cinema Org and the Inspection Board, but I don’t understand where they got the qualifications to do so. I don’t know and I don’t understand that based on what religious, conventional or occupational law or what virtue they give themselves the right to a say. I don’t know and I don’t understand how they’ve realized they can decide what’s good for me, but I can’t decide for myself!
I don’t understand how they’ve determined: peers and enthusiasts watching short films at a festival where at best there’d be 1000 of them, is not good for them. That how can there be so many meaningless and subpar movies and series (where any awful and vulgar joke goes and hurts our mental and spiritual wellbeing) that have the right to be screened for millions of people, but a handful of short films don’t get the chance for these limited screenings. What do they consider virtuous? And whose good are they trying to determine? What merits or transgressions are in the screenings of a handful of short films at festivals where enthusiasts gather?
I wish at least these good sirs would take a look at the permit guidelines of previous years and tell us why some of these films did get permits before and what change in the rules has caused them not to get those permits this year.
It is a collective wish of short filmmakers to want films screened at festivals under the supervision and responsibility of the festival director. Festivals aren’t nationwide screenings that would need the supervision of the Inspection Board. They’re a place for sharing and rating technical, artistic and communicative achievements of the short film community. As a member of the IYCS festival guideline council, I am sorry that we couldn’t hold up against the righteousness these sirs determine despite our efforts, negotiations and pleading, and the chance to screen several good films wasn’t provided. But, I do know and Understand that their problem isn’t cinema’s present; It’s its future they’re afraid of, so we will keep marching to the same beat
The official ISFA website announces that animations, documentaries and drama films by female Iranian directors will be screened in Strasbourg.
This month after March 8th there are programs focusing on women in honor of international women’s day.
Thanks to the Strass Iran Association and Ghasideh Golmakani, the Female Iranian Directors program will be screened at Strasbourg’s Cinema Star.
The documentary The Toaster I Used to Live In by Rojin Shafiei, animations Moment and Forever by Yasaman Hassani and Icky by Parastu Kardgar will be screened alongside “Hanged” by Roqayeh Tavakkoli and “Needle” by Anahita Qazvinizadeh. Online Shopping by Ghasideh Golmakani, Personal by Sonia Haddad and The Drive by Tanin Torabi.
The screening will include a Q&A session.
The event will be held on March 10th at 8 pm at Cinéma Star, Strasbourg
Directed by Farhad Delaram and produced by Dena Rassam, Tattoo has qualified for the 2020 Oscars by winning the Best Short Film award at the Tirana Film Festival in Albania.
The official ISFA website reports that Tattoo, the director’s seventh film and the producer’s first, has previously won the Crystal Bear at the Berlinale for Generation 14plus and the Best Short Film at Croatia’s Motovun Film Festival. The film has also been a part of Melbourne and Raindance festivals’ official selection.
This is the second Iranian short film that has qualified for the 2020 Academy Awards. Pedovore by Mohammad Kart has previously qualified by winning at the Odense Film Festival in Denmark.
Members of the academy will choose ten films out of the qualified and announce the “Short List” every December. Out of these 10 films, 5 will be the nominees at the Oscars.
Tattoo credits go as follows:
Director: Farhad Delaram, Producer: Dena Rassam, Screenplay: Farhad Delaram (Based on a plot by Dena Rassam), Cast: Behdokht Valian, Anahita Eghbalnejad, Ali Sanifar, Mojtaba Fallahi, Pouria Shakibaii, Mohsen Roumi, Zahra Mirzaii, Director of Photography: Mohammadreza Jahanpanah, Edit: Meysam Mouini, Sound Editing: Amirhossein Ghasemi, Production Design: Ali Pouya Ghasemi, Sound Mixing: Saeed zand, Farzin Zand, Makeup: Amir Torabi, Set Photography: Mohammad Masoumi, Production Manager: Diaeko Khaki
At the tenth ISFA Awards that was held on August 7th 2019 at the Museum of Cinema with Armin Isarian serving as director, The ISFA Emblem was awarded to Parviz Kimiavi, the renowned Iranian pioneer filmmaker. The ISFA emblem is awarded to one of the great Iranian filmmakers by the Iranian Short Film Association.
The official ISFA website reports that at the ceremony, which was attended by short film professionals, filmmakers and cinema figures, a compilation of Kimiavi’s work was screened, followed by Hamid Jafari, filmmaker and Kimiavi’s friend, reciting a letter Kimiavi had written for the Iranian Short Film Association.
A section of that letter reads: “This year marks my 80th birthday, and I’m glad to receive such a precious and beautiful gift as the ISFA Emblem from the young generation of filmmakers. Wish my generation had the same attitude towards its predecessors such as Fereydoon Rahnama, Ebrahim Golestan, Farrokh Ghaffari, Samuel Khachikian and others.”
Afterwards, the ISFA board of directors: Saeed Pouresmaili, Elham Hosseinzadeh, Mostafa Aleahmad, Mohammadreza Jahanpanah, Kaveh Sajjadi Hosseini and Omid Abdollahi handed the ISFA Emblem and plaque to Yasaman Kimiavi, Parviz Kimiavi’s niece, to send to him.
The plaque reads: “Dear Mr Parviz Kimiavi, your presence has enriched cinema. Your films are trailblazing, innovative and awe striking. Alas, you’re from home at these hard times for the Iranian cinema, but we have your precious works with us, and the future generations will benefit from them as well. Mr Kimiavi, like a skilled alchemist, you have made gold out of the sand dunes in your films, and we are grateful for all these treasures you have brought us.”
Later, Mostafa Aleahmad recounted a memory of Parviz Kimiavi, and criticized the fact that many renowned Iranian filmmakers have left Iran and others are retired at home and asked officials to improve some procedures, so these giants and luminaries have the chance to be present and active in the scene.
Parviz Kimiavi is an experimentalist filmmaker and a pioneer of Iranian new wave cinema. His work includes Mogholha (The Mongols), P Like Pelican, Baghe Sangui (The Stone Garden) and Iran Saraye Man Ast (Iran Is My Homeland), among others
According to ISFA’s official website, Inhale short film directed by Naser Zamiri, who is also a member of ISFA, has entered the competition section of 48th Huesca International Short Film Festival. The festival is one of the major short film festivals in the world and is recognized by The Academy and The Goya Awards (the most credible film Awards in Spain). The mentioned festival will be held from June 12th to 20th in Spain. Prior to this, Inhale short film had also entered the competition segment of South Korea’s Busan Short Film Festival. However, following the Coronavirus pandemic’s preventing measures, the festival has been postponed to August.
The Film crew includes:
Director: Naser Zamiri, Screen Writers: Naser Zamiri, Neda Asadi, Cinematographer: Ashkan Ashkani, Editor: Mohammad Tavakkoli, Sound Recordist: Mohammad Hossein Ebrahimi, Sound Designer and Sound Mixer: Ehsan Afsharian, Costume Designer: Leyla Naghdi, Makeup Artist: Pedram Zargar, Line Producer: Vahid Hajilouiy, Production Assistant: Mohammadreza Hariri, Colorist: Pouyan Aghababaiy, Special Effects: Mohsen Sadeghi, Poster Designer: Taha Zaker, Titling: Ashkan Ahmadi, Translator: Hoda Lezgi, Assistant Cameramen: Mojtaba Shadro, Masoud Seyyed Abbasi, Assistant Editors: Naghmeh Nakha’iy Sharif, Set Production Assistant: Mehdi Sangi, Assistant Costume Designer: Raha Dadkhah, Executive Producers: Naser Zamiri, Afsaneh Arzamani, Cast: Mehrdad Bakhshi, Neda Assadi, Ali Yazarloo
Since one of the main missions of ISFA has always been the discovery and encouragement of creative and visionary filmmakers, the ISFA board of directors decided to continue awarding the ISFA medallion to short filmmakers, but the high production costs and the need for harmony and consistency among all ISFA designs (the logo and other awards) called for a redesign of the medallion. To that end, the board of directors appointed Mostafa Aleahmad to the task to both use inter-union talent and lower the cost in fields members are proficient at. The ISFA medallion was redesigned and made in October 2019, and the first one was awarded to the jury’s pick at the 36th Tehran International Short Film Festival.
Mostafa Aleahmad explains the idea and process of the redesign:” …It’s as if every single frame of a film is a path of ebbs and flows that encompasses a riddle.
The process of making a film is like a labyrinth where finding the entrance and exit are difficult. This path has a starting point for entering that leads to an end, a path whose secrets must be discovered to be able to navigate its twists and turns, and finally, exit it. A mysterious maze that isn’t unlike the rough road of arts and filmmaking. This road is like a path yet untaken, and each moment we’re facing new revelations and resolutions for that riddle
ISFA, in association with the House of Cinema Film Centre screened the 38 selected short films from the 10th ISFA Awards on Tuesday and Wednesday, October 15-16 in Tehran. The program was met with significant attention and attendance from films’ crews and House of Cinema union members.
The ISFA official website reports that the films were screened in 3 slots each day. On the first day, the theatre was filled immediately, which caused much of the audience to watch the films sitting on the floor or standing.
After the screenings, there were Q&A sessions with some of the filmmakers including Hamed Aslani, director of S and Ali Paknia, director of Red Panda on day one, and on day two Karim Lakzaadeh and Siavash Shahabi, directors of Theatrical Kiss and Dissect respectively.
At the beginning of the session Kaveh Sajjadi Hosseini, vice-president of the ISFA and the event host, thanked the House of Cinema management along with the Film Centre director Naser Saffarian for this two-day event, saying: “according to their decision, the screening of short films will be more frequent from now on. This way, both filmmakers that have joined this association earlier or more recently can have a chance to experience this kind of cinema alongside each other.
Noting the ISFA board of directors’ efforts in increasing the number of venues for this type of screenings he mentioned: “Our goal with hosting these sessions which going forward will be more frequent, is screening short films that were not accepted at the ISFA awards but the board and the screening committee sees worthy of screening and analysis.”
As the director of the ISFA screening committee, Sajjadi Hosseini also promised to expand the screenings to other cities in Iran and notified of negotiations with the Iranian Artists Forum and Cinema Museum of Iran for further screenings.
At the end of the event, the House of Cinema Film Centre gifted the directors who attended the Q&A sessions with memorabilia.
