This year, my coverage is focused on films connected to the Middle East and North Africa. Based on the official festival schedule, 17 titles in the program are linked to the region through their production background, their subject, or both.

This first report brings these films together in one place as an opening overview of their presence at this year’s festival. In the coming days, I will continue following the program closely and hope to publish interviews with some of the filmmakers, along with further coverage of the festival.

Iran

LandStone

Director: Faraz Fadaian
Production: Iran, Switzerland
Story: In the Iranian desert, an elderly man and his wife face mortality and fading bonds. Seeking solace in a handmade cave, the man struggles to reconnect with his past in a lyrical portrait of a vanishing way of life.
Screenings: Saturday, April 25, 5:00 PM; Sunday, April 26, 10:00 AM
Venue: TLB 4; TLB 3

A Fox Under a Pink Moon

Directors: Mehrdad Oskouei, Soraya Akhalaghi
Production: Iran, Denmark, France
Story: Filmed on her phone over five years, 16-year-old Soraya documents her attempts to flee Iran for Austria. The young Afghan artist turns domestic violence and displacement into a self-narrated story of survival.
Screenings: Thursday, April 30, 7:45 PM; Friday, May 1, 3:00 PM
Venue: TLB 2; TLB 3

Vanishing Tracks

Director: Hamed Zolfaghari
Production: Iran, France, Norway, South Korea, Qatar
Story: In Iran’s remote nomadic landscape, a family tries to preserve its traditional life. When their sheep vanish overnight, tensions rise between the parents and their three sons.
Screenings: Monday, April 27, 5:30 PM; Tuesday, April 28, 1:30 PM
Venue: TLB 2; TLB 3

A War on Women

Director: Raha Shirazi
Production: Italy
Story: Through intimate interviews and archival footage, the film traces 40 years of feminist resistance against the Islamic Republic, leading to a movement shaped by the women the regime tried to silence.
Screenings: Sunday, April 26, 6:00 PM; Thursday, April 30, 5:45 PM
Venue: Hot Docs Cinema

Constant Battles

Director: Mackenzie Stannard
Production: Canada
Story: A young Canadian woman determined to become the first Iranian-born female Olympic boxer confronts her own anxiety and her mother’s past trauma.
Screenings: Saturday, April 25, 5:15 PM; Sunday, April 26, 10:45 AM
Venue: TLB 3; TLB 4

Palestine

American Doctor

Director: Poh Si Teng
Production: USA, Palestine, Denmark, Malaysia, Qatar
Story: Three American physicians, Palestinian, Jewish and Zoroastrian, risk everything to save lives in besieged Gaza while confronting political truths and a collapsing medical system.
Screenings: Tuesday, April 28, 5:15 PM; Wednesday, April 29, 11:30 AM
Venue: TLB 1

House of Hope

Director: Marjolein Busstra
Production: Netherlands, Palestine
Story: In the West Bank, a school run by a couple teaches Palestinian children non-violent resistance and offers a refuge from growing uncertainty.
Screenings: Thursday, April 30, 8:30 PM; Friday, May 1, 10:30 AM
Venue: TLB 1

Who Is Still Alive

Director: Nicolas Wadimoff
Production: Switzerland, France, Palestine
Story: Nine Palestinians revisit the events that forced them to flee Gaza in 2024, mapping towns, camps and neighbourhoods while remembering loss and displacement.
Screenings: Saturday, May 2, 4:30 PM; Sunday, May 3, 1:30 PM
Venue: TLB 3; TLB 2

Another Day Shall Come

Director: Aida Kaadan
Production: Palestine, Qatar, Lebanon, France
Story: Short film included in the program Lessons in Liberation.
Screenings: Saturday, May 2, 2:15 PM
Venue: TLB 4

Syria and Lebanon

Birds of War

Directors: Janay Boulos, Abd Alkader Habak
Production: UK, Syria, Lebanon
Story: A love story grows between a Lebanese journalist based in London and a Syrian cameraman through 13 years of war, revolutions and exile.
Screenings: Wednesday, April 29, 5:30 PM; Thursday, April 30, 2:30 PM
Venue: TLB 1

Türkiye

32 Meters

Director: Morteza Atabaki
Production: Türkiye, Iran, Qatar
Story: In rural Turkey, Halime has long challenged tradition. She gathers women for a shooting competition, opening space for debate, resistance and unexpected alliances.
Screenings: Friday, May 1, 8:45 PM; Sunday, May 3, 10:30 AM
Venue: TLB 3; TLB 2

Afghanistan

The Secret Reading Club of Kabul

Directors: Shakiba Adil, Elina Hirvonen
Production: Finland, Norway
Story countries: Afghanistan, Iran
Story: When the Taliban bars girls from secondary school, a group of friends forms a secret book club. Inspired by Anne Frank, they film their hidden lives as the story moves from Kabul to exile in Tehran and Germany.
Screenings: Saturday, April 25, 1:30 PM; Sunday, April 26, 7:15 PM
Venue: TLB 2; TLB 3

Paikar

Director: Dawood Hilmandi
Production: Netherlands
Story: From exile in Amsterdam, Dawood Hilmandi reflects on his family nickname, Paikar. Returning to Iran to reconcile with his authoritarian father, their journey to Afghanistan during the pandemic becomes a story of displacement and survival.
Screenings: Sunday, April 26, 4:00 PM; Monday, April 27, 8:15 PM
Venue: TLB 3

Libya

My Father and Qaddafi

Director: Jihan K
Production: Libya, USA
Story: A daughter traces the disappearance of her father, Libya’s former foreign minister and an opponent of Muammar Qaddafi, while exploring the long shadow of authoritarian rule on both family and country.
Screenings: Friday, May 1, 8:15 PM; Saturday, May 2, 11:45 AM
Venue: TLB 1; TLB 2

Morocco

Fatna, a Woman Named Rachid

Director: Hélène Harder
Production: Morocco, France, Belgium
Story: The film follows activist Fatna El Bouih, who was forcibly disappeared as a student in 1970s Morocco, as she reflects on her life and unfinished struggle for change.
Screenings: Friday, May 1, 2:30 PM; Saturday, May 2, 11:00 AM
Venue: TLB 2; TLB 1

L’mina

Director: Randa Maroufi
Production: Morocco, France, Italy, Qatar
Story: Short film screening with Parasisi.
Screenings: Friday, April 24, 9:00 PM; Saturday, April 25, 11:30 AM
Venue: TLB 4; TLB 3

4937 Kilowatts a Year

Directors: Ellie Delvaux, Madeleine Faburel-Dumail
Production: Belgium, Morocco
Story: Short film screening within the program Les Habitants.
Screenings: Saturday, May 2, 8:00 PM; Sunday, May 3, 11:00 AM
Venue: TLB 4

Tickets for Hot Docs screenings are available through the festival’s official box office.

The MENA presence at Cannes this year is not only about the nationality of the filmmakers. Parallel Tales enters this conversation through Farhadi’s Iranian identity, but the story itself takes place in Paris. Reports about the film also point to a French production and filming in the French capital. That means one of the most important Iranian voices in contemporary cinema is arriving at Cannes this time with a story set outside Iran itself. Very little has been released so far about the plot, but early synopses suggest that the film follows a young man who becomes deeply attached to an older woman, a relationship that slowly turns into a dangerous obsession.

In the Un Certain Regard section, La Más Dulce by Moroccan-French filmmaker Laïla Marrakchi is one of this year’s notable titles linked to North Africa. The film follows two young Moroccan women who travel to southern Spain for seasonal work. On one level, the story moves close to the experience of labor migration and separation from home. On another, more painful level, it looks at the vulnerability of women caught between economic need, discrimination, and abuse.

Also in Un Certain Regard, Yesterday the Eye Didn’t Sleep by Palestinian filmmaker Rakan Mayasi stands out as an important presence. Set in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, the film builds a heavy, mysterious, and unsettled atmosphere from the start. It begins with the disappearance of a teenage girl and gradually opens into layers of memory, fear, anger, and silence inside a closed community.

In the Special Screenings section, Rehearsals for a Revolution by Iranian filmmaker and actor Pegah Ahangarani has also been selected. This is her first feature film, and it engages directly with the political and social memory of Iran. Using personal archives, family images, home videos, and footage of protests, the film looks back across more than four decades of contemporary Iranian history.

I spoke with Fabian Volti about Abel, Zlatko Pranjic about The Sky Above Zenica, and Laurence Lévesque about Okurimono. Each shared a brief insight into their work during the festival.

I also had a short conversation with Esin Özalp Öztürk, the International Program Coordinator, about the plans for the next edition. Special thanks to İdil Alakuş for the warm support throughout the event.

All video interviews and reports from the festival are available to watch here.

@thesouzianA director of The Sky Above Zenica, Zlatko Pranjic, shares a short 20-second insight into the film. Directors: Zlatko Pranjic, Nanna Frank Møller Producer: Lise Lense-Møler Production Company: Magic Hour Films (Denmark) Screening at 1001 Documentary Film Festival March 31, 2026 - 13:00 April 2, 2026 - 20:00 AKM Yeşilçam Cinema

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@thesouzianThe director of Abel, Fabian Volti from Sardinia, Italy, shares a short 20-second insight into his film. Screenwriters: Fabian Volti, Stefania Muresu Production Company: Roda Film Screening again at 1001 Documentary Film Festival March 3, 2026 - 19:00 AKM Yeşilçam Cinema Special thanks to İdil Alakuş

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@thesouzianThe 1001 Documentary Film Festival in Istanbul has come to an end, and it was truly an honor to be part of it. I had a short conversation with my dear friend Esin Özalp Öztürk, the International Program Coordinator, about the plans for next year. Looking forward to what is coming next. #istanbul #filmfestival

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• Watch more on my Instagran: https://instagram.com/abbasmhosseini

The films come from different regions, including Iran, Japan, the Balkans, and the Middle East, each approaching women’s experiences from a different angle.

In Cutting Through Rocks, directed by Sara Khaki and Mohammadreza Eyni, the film follows a woman in a rural area of Iran who is trying to change her position within a traditional social structure.

In Okurimono, directed by Laurence Lévesque, a Japanese-Canadian woman returns to Nagasaki and begins to reconstruct her family’s past, linked to the atomic bombing. The film moves slowly, using objects and memories to build its narrative.

Noriko becomes a bridge between generations. Her attempt to understand her mother’s past turns into a quiet act of preservation. Mothers and women have carried stories of history and trauma throughout history, passing them on to the next generation. This sense of transmission is clearly present throughout the film.

In The Sky Above Zenica, directed by Zlatko Pranjić and Nanna Frank Møller, life in an industrial city in Bosnia is shaped by heavy pollution. Women are part of this environment, where daily life is directly affected by the conditions of the city.

In Where We Used to Sleep, directed by Matthäus Wörle, a woman remains as the last resident of a village destroyed by toxic waste from a nearby copper mine. The film follows her life in this damaged landscape, moving between present time and memory, while pointing to the long-term impact of extractive industries on local communities.

The films span a wide geographical range, yet their language feels close to one another. A shared experience of women runs through them, shaped by tragedy, the effort to create change, and a deep connection to place. These stories are built on lived experience, collective memory, and social conditions. This diversity, along with the sense of balance and similarity, stood out to me as one of the notable aspects of this year’s Istanbul 1001 Documentary Film Festival.

The festival was founded in 1997 by the Belgesel Sinemacılar Birliği (BSB) and is known as Turkey’s first documentary film festival. From the beginning, it created a meeting point for filmmakers, students, and audiences through screenings, talks, and shared moments around documentary cinema.

According to its official history, the festival held 17 editions between 1997 and 2015, presenting 1,238 films from 60 countries to nearly 160,000 viewers. Now, in 2026, it returns with a clear intention to reconnect the documentary community and bring that atmosphere back to Istanbul.

On the first day, I spoke with my dear friend, Esin Özalp Öztürk, who serves as International Program Coordinator. She pointed to the diversity of the selection and the long effort behind rebuilding the festival. After years of pause, the event has come back through the dedication of the team, led by Bahriye Kabadayı Dal and Nilgün Yanık Emiroğlu.

I will continue sharing reports and conversations with filmmakers in the coming days.

If you are in Istanbul, this is a rare chance to experience it. I would also be glad to meet.

• Festival programme and catalogue: https://1001belgesel.com/festival-katalog

The initiative brings together both direct funding and detailed post-production support. Beyond La Biennale di Venezia’s €10,000 main award, selected films may receive specific services from industry partners. These include colour correction by Laser Film, sound mixing by Studio A Fabrica, film music support from Oticons, visual effects from M74, and cloud archiving by Mnemonica. Technical delivery is also covered through DCP mastering and subtitling by Sub-Ti Ltd. and TITRAFILM, along with accessibility services by Sub-Ti Access. In parallel, distribution and market support is offered by MAD Solutions, while Rai Cinema provides a cash award tied to first negotiation rights for Italian TV. Additional backing comes from Red Sea Film Foundation, El Gouna Film Festival, Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie, Cinémathèque Afrique of the Institut Français, Festival International du Film d’Amiens, and Festival International du Film de Fribourg.

Several funding opportunities are dedicated specifically to Arab projects. The El Gouna Film Festival offers a cash award for one Arab project and provides access to the CineGouna market. The Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie supports projects from countries such as Egypt, Tunisia, and Morocco, especially at the post-production stage, through reimbursement of eligible services. MAD Solutions also provides minimum guarantee offers for selected Arab films, supporting their path toward distribution.

Full details of each award, service, and eligibility criteria can be found on the official Final Cut in Venice page: https://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/2026/final-cut-venice

• Applications are open through the official submission form: https://web9.labiennale.org/finalcut/finalcut22.aspx

• Deadline for submissions: 9 June 2026

The short won Best Live Action Short Film in a rare tie with The Singers, giving the ceremony one small but meaningful connection to the region, even as no film from the Middle East and North Africa itself took home a trophy. Congratulations to filmmakers Natalie Musteata and Alexandre Singh, along with the wider team behind the film. For many viewers in the region, the film’s win felt even more meaningful because Zar Amir Ebrahimi was part of it.

What makes Two People Exchanging Saliva interesting is that it is not a simple festival short built around one visual trick. It is set in a surreal black-and-white world where kissing is illegal, and people buy things by slapping each other. The result is absurd, funny, and disturbing at the same time, as if desire, punishment, and consumer culture have all been folded into one strange social ritual.

That strange world is also political, even if the film never turns into a speech. The New Yorker described it as a satire of consumerism and sexual repression, and noted that its inspirations include global authoritarianism and Iran’s Woman, Life, Freedom protests. That context makes the Oscar win feel larger than a short-film headline. It becomes a reminder that even when MENA does not win directly, the region still leaves traces in the stories that travel furthest.

As for the region’s official nominees, MENA had presence but no final victory. Iran was represented by It Was Just an Accident in Best International Feature Film, and that same film also earned a nomination for Best Original Screenplay. Iran also appeared through Cutting Through Rocks in Best Documentary Feature Film. Tunisia’s The Voice of Hind Rajab, a film deeply tied to Palestine through its story and cast, was nominated for Best International Feature Film as well.

Other region-linked titles also appeared around the edges of the nominations. Butcher’s Stain was nominated in Best Live Action Short Film, and Children No More: “Were and Are Gone” was among the nominees in Best Documentary Short Film. So the final number is clear: zero Oscar-winning films came from MENA this year, even though the region showed up in several meaningful categories.

Beyond the main nominees, there were a few more connections worth noticing. Sirat, a Spain-led nominee in Best International Feature Film, kept North Africa in the conversation through its Moroccan setting, even if it was not a MENA production in the strict sense. Iranian-French cinematographer Darius Khondji was also nominated for Best Cinematography for Marty Supreme, which added another Iranian name to the wider Oscar map this year.

And then there was the mood of the night itself. A few artists made short anti-war gestures, with Javier Bardem offering the clearest one when he appeared with a “No to war” pin and voiced support for Palestine. It did not define the ceremony, but it did remind everyone that world events were never really outside the room. In that sense, this was a night without a trophy for MENA, but not a night without presence.

The top prize of the 76th Berlin International Film Festival, the Golden Bear for Best Film, went to Yellow Letters, a Turkish-language drama by German-Turkish filmmaker Ilker Catak. The story is set in Turkey, while the film was shot in Germany, and it focuses on a marriage that slowly breaks under political pressure, where a single online criticism pulls private life into a cycle of threat and removal. Jury president Wim Wenders, announcing the winner, called it a “terrifying premonition and a look at a near future” that could happen in our countries too. Among the other major awards, the Silver Bear for Best Director went to British filmmaker Grant Gee for Everybody Digs Bill Evans, and the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize went to Salvation by Turkish filmmaker Emin Alper.

At the heart of Yellow Letters stands a couple of artists whose life begins to collapse after one administrative blow, followed by steady, exhausting pressure. The title points to the yellow letters themselves, papers that stamp dismissal onto their lives like a cold seal. The film does not try to explain everything directly, and part of its anxiety comes from the fact that the exact reason for the ban and exclusion is never fully placed on the table. For the viewer, this uncertainty becomes like a stone in your shoe: small, but impossible to ignore. As the story moves forward, financial strain and emotional fatigue eat away at the relationship, and the film suggests that repression does not only happen in the street. Sometimes it enters the home, and then quietly takes a person’s voice away from them.

The Middle East On The Winners’ Stage

For Turkey, the closing night was, in Cumhuriyet’s words, a “double victory.” After Catak’s Golden Bear for Yellow Letters, the Grand Jury Prize also went to Emin Alper, for a film that follows violence, prejudice, and tribal conflict in a remote landscape, pulling the crisis out of a family story and two brothers. Yet what truly set Alper’s presence apart was his acceptance speech. He used the global stage to express solidarity with political prisoners in Turkey, with people in Iran living under repression, and with the people of Palestine, showing how this generation of regional filmmakers is less interested in neutrality.

This atmosphere did not stay limited to Turkey. Gaza became one of the festival’s main points of discussion and it shaped the tone of the awards ceremony as well. Lebanese filmmaker Marie-Rose Osta, received the Golden Bear for Best Short Film for Someday a Child, and spoke directly about children in Gaza, Palestine, and Lebanon, insisting their lives are not negotiable. Soon after, Palestinian-Syrian filmmaker Abdallah Al-Khatib won Best First Feature in the Perspectives section for the documentary Chronicles From the Siege, and delivered a clear message: who stood with us, and who did not, will be remembered. In that sense, Berlinale this year felt like a place where silence had become harder than speaking.

If we map the region’s presence through these moments, a strong wave appears: Turkey took two major awards, while Arab filmmakers, including voices connected to Lebanon, Syria, and Palestine, won key prizes in the short film and first feature categories. Alongside the stage, Iran was not only present as a subject of solidarity. According to Soureh Cinema, Iranian film bodies had an active and targeted presence at the European Film Market (EFM), presenting a selection of feature films, shorts, documentaries, and animation, as a reminder that despite many obstacles, Iran’s international film economy and distribution efforts are still moving. On the margins of these debates, the Caucasus also remained quietly present within Berlinale’s structure, especially through the market, talents, and co-production platforms.

In the end, Berlinale has always carried its own controversies, because the festival’s political identity has long been a serious and debated issue for critics and filmmakers alike. Still, it seems the festival is trying to place cinematic quality first, and then allow the political meaning of films to reveal itself through conversation and reaction. Now we will have to see how this balance develops in the coming years, and what path Berlinale chooses for its future identity.

Founded in 2021 alongside Saudi Arabia’s wider cultural reforms, the Red Sea Film Foundation has quickly positioned itself as a serious cinema hub in the region. Based in the historic city of Jeddah, it is not only a festival organizer; through the Fund, it has become a driving engine for independent film production across Asia and Africa. The foundation has supported 330 projects since its launch, and a glance at the routes taken by supported titles through major global festivals suggests that the label “supported by Red Sea Fund” is not a ceremonial badge, but a signal of backing for artists and works with real potential to travel and shine internationally.

With an annual budget of over $15 million, the Red Sea Fund has shaped its mission around emerging voices, bold storytelling, and independent cinema. In earlier years, the Fund focused on the Arab world and Africa, but since 2024 it has fully opened its support to Asian countries, widening the program’s reach. Its structure is designed so that projects at different stages of filmmaking can still find a suitable entry point, which is why the Fund divides its calendar into four time cycles.

1) Cycle One: Post-Production Fund

Dates: Jan 6 to Jan 27

In this section, the Fund looks for projects that have finished filming and have reached a 60-minute rough cut, but face financial obstacles in editing and post-production. Feature fiction, documentary, or feature animation projects over 60 minutes can apply in this cycle.

2) Cycle Two: Production Fund

Dates: Mar 6 to Mar 21

The most competitive part of the Fund is the Production Fund, where ideas are placed on the jury table and selected projects receive production and shooting grants. Alongside feature fiction and documentary, episodic series with episodes between 25 and 59 minutes are also accepted. Saudi filmmakers can also benefit here with short films under 60 minutes.

3) Cycle Three: Development Fund

Dates: May 6 to May 21

Many artists face barriers in the very first steps of creating a film, and some projects disappear early because there is no budget for research, expansion, and writing. The Red Sea Development Fund is built to support research, scriptwriting, and the development stage, helping prevent the loss of these works before they are even born. In this cycle, feature documentaries and episodic projects often have a stronger chance compared to other competitors.

4) Cycle Four: Post-Production Fund, Cycle 2

Dates: Jul 6 to Jul 21

This cycle is a second post-production opportunity in the second half of the year. It is designed for filmmakers who finish shooting in the first half of the year and cannot wait for the January call of the next year. It gives artists a chance to deliver a final cut in time for the winter festival season.

Red Sea Film Festival Fund Tracks

The Red Sea Film Festival includes three main tracks:

1. Feature-length documentary, fiction, and animation, where Asian and African filmmakers can apply for funding.

2. A series track, with special attention to episodic works of 25 to 59 minutes per episode.

3. A short film track, reserved for Saudi filmmakers, created to support young local Saudi talent.

Although the exact amount depends on each project, based on previous years the Fund can provide support up to $25,000 for development, up to $500,000 for production, and up to $100,000 for post-production.

Additional Notes And Rules

A few practical points matter here, and the Fund is clear about them. Most application materials must be in English, except for screenplays of Saudi projects. If you are applying in post-production, your film needs to be feature-length, with at least a 60-minute rough cut, and it must have English subtitles.

The paperwork is not just formality. Along with a logline and a detailed synopsis, the Fund asks for a Chain of Titles and a Financial Plan. In simple terms: show you truly control the rights, and show exactly where the money will go.

One condition is especially important and should be read twice. If your project receives support, you are required to offer your world premiere first to the Red Sea International Film Festival. It does not always change your strategy, but it can shape your festival path.

Think of this Fund as more than a transfer of money. For many filmmakers, it becomes a quiet partner that helps a project cross the hardest part of the journey: finishing. If you are serious about applying, start with the calendar, build your documents with care, and send a package that feels honest, precise, and ready to move.

• Contact (Fund inquiries): fund@redseafilmfest.com

• Official link: https://redseafilmfest.com/en/red-sea-fund/

Two of the five will screen as world premieres: An Incomplete Calendar by Sanaz Sohrabi, and The Cow’s Complaint by Mahdy Abo Bahat and Abdo Zin Eldin.

The remaining three will be presented as French premieres: Baisanos by Andrés Khamis Giacoman and Francisca Khamis Giacoman, Casting for a Film, Ihsan’s Diary by Lamia Joreige, and The Weary Hours of Two Labs Assistants by Burak Çevik.

Together, these films bring rare perspectives shaped by lived experience, mixing documentary craft with bold artistic choices, and carrying voices that feel both local and widely resonant.

AN INCOMPLETE CALENDAR

• Director: Sanaz Sohrabi

• Countries: Canada, Iran, Turkey, Venezuela

• Runtime: 77 minutes

• Format: World premiere

This film offers a different and surprising narrative about oil issues and the “Third World” project. It is a multimedia narrative that depicts artistic representation in the post-colonial era. Using archival images and musical records such as Rhymes and Songs for OPEC, recorded in 1980 by the Concert Choir of the Central University of Venezuela, the film reflects stories around Arab oil companies.

By creatively weaving songs and rarely heard archives together, Sanaz Sohrabi presents a different account of oil, national sovereignty, and its impact on international relations. The film creates a space to challenge topics such as the artwork itself, the making of art, and its mission to stay in dialogue with the surrounding world.

Sohrabi is a filmmaker born in Iran, also known as a researcher and artist. Her films are often shown in art festivals, museums, and contemporary art spaces. Her projects generally focus on geopolitics and the post-colonial world, where memory and the archive play an important role. In this path, she uses creative approaches in photography and film.

She is known for a documentary trilogy about oil and visual culture, and AN INCOMPLETE CALENDAR is the latest work in this series. The other two works are The Sky Trembles and the Earth Is Afraid and the Two Eyes Are Not Brothers and A Loss of Something Ever Felt I. Like the latest film, they blend documentary and politics with the lived experience of making art.

BAISANOS

• Directors: Andrés Khamis Giacoman and Francisca Khamis Giacoman

• Countries: Chile, Palestine, Spain

• Runtime: 14 minutes

• Format: French premiere

This film portrays the Baisanos, the loyal and passionate supporters of Club Deportivo Palestino. The club belongs to Chile’s first division football scene and was founded in 1920 by Palestinian immigrants. The two narrators of the film, Lina Morvin and Mohammad Abdalnaim Qader Odeh, reflect Chile and Palestine. Through their stories, they show identity and the meaning of return through language and culture.

Baisanos presents an image of football beyond sport: a link between lands, between past and future, between community and resistance. It also shows how football, as a symbol of shared heritage and resilience, pushes different diasporas to shape, and be shaped by, the place where they find a new home. The word Baisanos comes from “paisano”, meaning “compatriot” or “of the same roots”. It is a word used within the Palestinian-Chilean community to refer to solidarity.

Andrés and Francisca Khamis Giacoman are a brother and sister from the Palestinian diaspora in Chile. In their first joint work, they explore migrant identity, reflecting their lived experience and their ongoing engagement with questions of identity. Andrés is based in Barcelona and works as a film editor. He focuses on migration issues and founded Trabaja Global. Francisca, based in Amsterdam, is an artist who revisits migration stories through performances, installations, and audiovisual works.

CASTING FOR A FILM, IHSAN’S DIARY

• Director: Lamia Joreige

• Country: Lebanon

• Runtime: 48 minutes

• Format: French premiere

Known as a video installation, this work is a documentary that shows the casting process for Lamia Joreige’s upcoming feature film titled Jerusalem: The Diary of Ihsan Turjman. Her feature is adapted from a manuscript belonging to a Jerusalem soldier in the Ottoman army in 1915 during World War I, developed in collaboration with Palestinian writer Majd Kayyal.

The film focuses on Ihsan’s diary and his daily struggles during World War I, portraying challenges such as famine, illness, political insecurity, and uncertainty about the future. At the same time, it shows his dreams of education and his platonic love. At the end of the war, he is murdered.

In this documentary in Beirut, Rana Ziadane and Dana El Sharif audition for the role of Thurayya. Aly Harkous and Omar Ahmed audition for the role of Ihsan, and Imad Alwaneh auditions for the role of Mohieddine. They perform scenes in different takes, and even discuss various issues while working.

Lamia Joreige, born in Lebanon, is a visual artist and filmmaker working in Beirut. She uses a combination of archival elements and imagination, reflecting individual stories alongside society and history. Her works have been shown in many institutions.

She is also one of the founders and directors of Beirut Art Center, a dedicated space for contemporary art in Lebanon.

Other films by her include Object of War and And the Living Is Easy. Her documentaries are also well known, including Here and Perhaps Elsewhere.

THE COW’S COMPLAINT

• Directors: Mahdy Abo Bahat and Abdo Zin Eldin

• Countries: Egypt, France, United Kingdom

• Runtime: 95 minutes

• Format: World premiere

This feature-length documentary has been released as a co-production between Egypt, France, and the United Kingdom. Previously, in 2023, Mahdy Abo Bahat and Abdo Zin Eldin collaborated on an experimental documentary short titled Goose’s Excuse (Ozr el wezzah), which appeared at international festivals such as Oberhausen and the BFI London Film Festival.

The works of these two filmmakers approach rural life and spiritual elements through an artistic lens. They reflect the duo’s tendency toward documentary-making that blends lived experience and art, through the layering of sound and image.

THE WEARY HOURS OF TWO LABS ASSISTANTS

• Director: Burak Çevik

• Countries: Turkey, Germany, Croatia, United Kingdom

• Runtime: 22 minutes

• Format: French premiere

This short drama is a creative work about the coexistence of logical research and intuitive understanding. Two lab assistants, at midnight, examine an unknown substance using specific devices and methods. During a break, one of them makes Turkish coffee, and their night changes. The process turns into a kind of fortune-telling, and by moving from analysis toward intuition, they imagine another way of knowing and another kind of science.

This short film was first shown worldwide in the Forum Expanded section of the Berlinale. It begins with a laboratory and scientific atmosphere, and as time passes and fatigue increases, it shifts from data-driven thinking to imagination. This shift becomes the core of its visual experience.

The film raises questions about the limits of logic and the role of intuition in knowledge, and it subtly tells this through the context of Turkish culture and society.

Burak Çevik has a background in producing experimental and artistic works. Other films by him, such as The Pillar of Salt (2018), Belonging (2019), Forms of Forgetting (2023), and Nothing in Its Place (2024), have been screened at the Berlinale. His works study memory and human experience, and are known for their unconventional forms.

Cinéma du Reel, founded in 1978 and organized by the Bibliothèque publique d’information (Bpi) in France, has long been a home for documentaries that take risks. Each year, it presents around 200 films across several sections, from emerging voices to established filmmakers.

The 48th edition runs in Paris from March 21 to March 28, 2026. In competition, these five films bring Middle East and North Africa stories in different forms and textures, reminding us how documentary cinema can still surprise us, and still make us look again.

Official competition list: https://www.cinemadureel.org/en/48th-edition-d-39-films-in-competition/

For more updates on cinema and arts from the Middle East, follow me here.

In the Middle East, the idea of an “independent” festival is often defined by distance from the state, because government involvement in culture is usually more direct and decisive. That is why financial or structural links to the state quickly turn into questions of representation and legitimacy, not just management or support. For many artists, a boycott is therefore more than protest. It is a way of saying: “this stage, this institution, and this image” cannot represent “us” and “independent artists” at this moment.

The Boycott Of The 44th Fajr Film Festival

After the protests in early January 2026 and reports of a very high number of deaths on January 8 and 9 in Iran., a new wave of boycott talk rose among some artists and audiences. During the same period, reports circulated about the absence of some winners at the closing ceremony. In particular, it was said that key acting award winners were not in the hall to receive their prizes, and that the awards were collected by representatives. At the same time, some film teams reportedly asked for their works to be removed from the festival, or publicly distanced themselves from it.

Among the most discussed cases, Saeed Zamanian, the writer and director of Arambakhsh (in the main competition), said that “out of respect” for those who lost their lives in the protests, he would not take part in the festival. Soon after, Saleh Alavizadeh, one of the screenwriters of “Billboard”, also released a short statement calling the festival a “major blood-washing ceremony” and said he was personally withdrawing his screenplay from the judging process.

Why The Weight Of Boycotts Changes From Country To Country

A festival is a professional, official moment for filmmakers, but it cannot be accepted only because it is a festival. Film festivals have their own “character” and reflect the beliefs, priorities, and goals defined by their organizers. The key question is how much artists and filmmakers can align with that character and cooperate with it. Festivals gain legitimacy through artists, and artists also gain part of their professional status through festivals.

In Europe and the United States, boycotts of festivals and cultural ceremonies also happen, but these events are often not directly fused with the state. Their identity is closer to a cultural institution than an official showcase. Funding is usually more mixed, processes are seen as more transparent, freer media can investigate and criticize, and artists have clearer public ways to express dissent.

Because of this, boycotts in the West often fall into three patterns: objections to institutional policies and pressure on political expression, protests against image-making and cultural legitimacy (artwashing), and disputes over identity and representation, meaning who has the right to define the story of an artwork or a society in public. The result is that attending a Western festival is less likely to be read as approval of an official narrative.

But in a festival like Fajr, where the link to the official structure is strong and, for part of the public, it carries a representative role, absence or withdrawal more quickly takes on a political and moral meaning. In such spaces, a boycott is not just “saying no”. It is an attempt to cut the connection between cultural prestige and institutional legitimacy.

I suggest reading my friend Ghazaleh Soltani’s article, State Cinema Represents Power: Independent Cinema Represents Truth, published in Le Monde.

Among the other Middle Eastern winners were Under the Same Sky by Khalil Ashawi, honored with a Special Mention in the DocLab Immersive section, and Paikar by Dawood Hilmandi, which received the Best First Feature award. Dreams of the Wild Oaks by Marjan Khosravibaledi was also recognized with a Special Mention in the IDFA Forum, marking an important moment for emerging voices from the region.

The presence of Middle Eastern filmmakers at IDFA this year felt both powerful and quietly inspiring. Their films showed how this region carries a deep capacity for documentary storytelling, moving between personal memory, social struggle, and artistic experimentation. Each work offers its own voice, yet together they reflect a landscape shaped by resilience, imagination, and lived experience. It is a gentle reminder that the Middle East remains one of the most vibrant sources of documentary cinema today, reaching global audiences with honesty and emotional depth.

A Fox Under a Pink Moon

Director: Mehrdad Oskouei
Countries: Iran, France, United Kingdom, United States, Denmark
Award: Best Film – International Competition, IDFA 2025 (€15,000 prize)

A Fox Under a Pink Moon follows the life of Soraya, a sixteen year old Afghan artist trying to escape years of violence, separation, and uncertainty. The film is built entirely from footage she recorded on her phone over five years, capturing her escape attempts, her drawings, the bruises on her body, and the fragile moments of hope she finds in small acts of creation. Mehrdad Oskouei shapes this intimate self portrait with sensitivity, letting Soraya’s voice guide the rhythm of the story. Her fox, pink moon, and silent clown become symbols of survival, turning the film into a personal journey of resistance and imagination.

Oskouei has been shaping his own space in documentary cinema for many years. Born in Tehran and trained in filmmaking and photography, he has always moved toward stories that sit quietly at the edges of society. His work is known for patience, closeness, and a kind of listening that lets people speak in their own rhythm.

Across two decades, his films have traveled to festivals around the world and slowly formed a long relationship with IDFA. From early titles like My Mother’s House, Lagoon and The Other Side of Burka to the later presence of Sunless Shadows, his connection with the festival has grown step by step. A Fox Under a Pink Moon feels like a continuation of that path, bringing together the themes he has returned to again and again: fragile lives, private courage, and the small moments that say more than large events.

Past Future Continuous

Directors: Morteza Ahmadvand, Firouzeh Khosrovani
Countries: Iran, Norway, Italy
Award: Best Film – Envision Competition, IDFA 2025 (€15,000 prize)

Past Future Continuous unfolds like a quiet window into distance, memory, and the fragile threads that keep a family connected across continents. The film follows Maryam, who left Iran decades ago and now watches over her elderly parents in Tehran through a network of security cameras. What begins as a practical solution slowly becomes an emotional mirror: long pauses, small gestures, and the passing of time inside the apartment she once called home.

The filmmakers weave surveillance footage together with childhood home videos, building a layered portrait of exile and longing. At moments the film feels almost like a diary, shaped by silence, space, and the soft ache of being far from the people who shaped your earliest memories. Birds that appear throughout the film take on a gentle symbolic weight, sometimes pointing to confinement, sometimes to the courage to break free.

Firouzeh Khosrovani is a filmmaker from Tehran whose work often centers on memory, identity, and the personal histories embedded inside Iranian society. She studied visual arts in Milan and later completed a Master’s in Journalism in Tehran, a combination that gives her films both visual clarity and narrative depth. From Life Train and Rough Cut to Fest of Duty, her films trace the quiet shifts inside family life and social change.

Her 2020 film Radiograph of a Family became a turning point, winning major awards at IDFA and confirming her as one of the most thoughtful documentary voices from Iran. With Past Future Continuous, she continues this exploration of intimate histories and the emotional weight carried across borders.

Morteza Ahmadvand is a multimedia artist and filmmaker from Khorramabad whose work often reflects his background in painting. Trained at the University of Tehran, he brings a strong sense of visual composition to his films, moving freely between installation, video art, and documentary. His projects explore themes of freedom, memory, and the generational tensions that shape contemporary Iranian life. His work has appeared in major exhibitions, and several pieces are part of the Centre Pompidou collection, marking him as a voice that moves naturally between gallery spaces and cinema.

Under the Same Sky

Director: Khalil Ashawi
Countries: Palestine, Turkey
Award: Special Mention – IDFA DocLab Competition for Immersive Non-Fiction, IDFA 2025

Under the Same Sky places the viewer inside Gaza through a 360 degree camera carried by journalist Sami. The calm sea behind him and the ruins rising ahead create a quiet contrast that reflects the tension of everyday life under siege. As he drives along the coastline in a press vehicle, he meets people searching for what remains of their homes and speaks with journalists who continue working despite exhaustion and fear.

The immersive format turns war from an abstract concept into something lived and immediate. Wherever the viewer turns, another broken street or damaged building fills the frame, removing the distance that usually separates an audience from a conflict. Through its still moments and direct conversations, the film shows how people navigate the fragile space between survival, resilience, and the need to keep telling the truth.

Khalil Ashawi, together with co director Hadeel Arja, builds an experience that feels both close and overwhelming at the same time. Their work suggests how journalism, in places like Gaza, becomes more than a profession. It becomes a form of presence, a way of insisting that the world does not look away.

Paikar

Director: Dawood Hilmandi
Countries: Netherlands, Afghanistan
Awards:
• IDFA Award for Best First Feature (€5,000 prize)
• Special Mention – IDFA Award for Best Dutch Film
• FIPRESCI Award

Paikar looks at the personal history of Dawood Hilmandi, an Afghan filmmaker shaped by war, displacement, and the burden of a name that has followed him since childhood. In his family, paikar means war or warrior. It is a title carried with pride, but in the film it becomes something more complex, tied to a past he can no longer ignore. The story follows him as he returns home to confront the distance that conflict created inside his family and to reconnect with his aging father.

Hilmandi grew up between borders, first leaving Afghanistan, then Iran, before eventually settling in Amsterdam. Questions of home, identity, and belonging stayed with him across these shifts. After a personal loss, he decides to go back to Iran, spending slow days with his father and allowing old conversations and routines to return in their own time. Their path then leads them to Afghanistan, where the shadow of Covid-19 adds another layer to their uncertain journey.

Within this fragile space, father and son begin to move closer, revealing how memory, silence, and shared history can shape relationships across decades.

In conversations about the film, Hilmandi describes how Paikar grew from trying to understand a father shaped by war, loss, and the long history of Hazara persecution. Making the film meant stepping into a cultural taboo and opening wounds that had stayed hidden for years. It was a difficult process, but also a rare chance to rebuild a fragile bond and to give shape to a story often left unspoken.

Paikar stands as a personal testimony and a reminder that some stories from Afghanistan are best told by those who have carried them through their own lives.

Dreams of the Wild Oaks

Director: Marjan Khosravibaledi
Country: Iran (co-production: France, Spain)
Section: IDFA Forum 2025 – Rough Cut Project
Award: Special Mention – IDFA Forum Award for Best Rough Cut Project

Dreams of the Wild Oaks is an Iranian project by Marjan Khosravibaledi, developed as a Rough Cut Project at this year’s IDFA Forum. The film follows Samaneh, a young Bakhtiari girl whose search for rare and endangered birds slowly becomes a way to reclaim control over her future. What begins as a simple journey across mountains and villages reveals a deeper attempt to resist a forced marriage and to question an old tradition known as Cease Blood Sacrifice.

As the story moves through her steps and encounters, the film observes the pressures surrounding her and the relationship she holds with her father. It stays close to the rhythms of her world, allowing the landscape, the customs, and her quiet determination to shape the narrative.

The project’s Special Mention at the Forum reflects both its urgency and the clarity of its vision. Even in its rough cut form, Dreams of the Wild Oaks stands out for the way it carries a young girl’s voice outward from a remote region to an international stage. It suggests that stories like Samaneh’s have the power to travel far when they are given the space to be heard.

The brilliance of Middle Eastern filmmakers at this year’s IDFA was truly remarkable. Their stories came from different places and different histories, yet together they shaped one of the most memorable presences of the festival. I congratulate all of these directors and their production and distribution teams, and I hope the attention they received this year opens more space for documentary voices from the region. These films show how much remains to be discovered when personal stories are allowed to travel freely.

Set during the harsh sanctions of the 1990s, this quiet Iraqi drama has become one of the most talked-about debuts of the year. It is a film that turns survival into poetry, unfolding in a world where childhood is shaped by fear, scarcity, and the invisible reach of politics. Lamia, a nine-year-old girl, is chosen to bake the President’s birthday cake. Together with her friend Saeed, she crosses the dusty roads and the flooded marshes of southern Iraq, searching for the impossible: sugar, flour, and hope.

Between Reality and Imagination

There is something deeply personal in how Hadi looks at Iraq, not through tragedy but through the eyes of a child who still dares to imagine. The President’s Cake captures this feeling with honesty and tenderness. Every frame feels like an act of remembering. Hadi has said he wanted to document reality as it was, to rebuild the world of his childhood with complete authenticity. The film was shot entirely in the Mesopotamian Marshes, a place both real and mythical, the cradle of civilization and a symbol of loss. The camera moves between water and dust, between dream and document, creating a language that feels both poetic and raw.

These are not trained actors. Their faces carry the truth of a country that has seen too much. Baneen Ahmed Nayyef, who plays Lamia, was found through a one-minute phone video sent to the director just two weeks before filming. Sajad Mohamad Qasem, who plays Saeed, was discovered by chance in a café, his eyes full of curiosity and fatigue. Their performances are unfiltered and instinctive, untouched by acting technique. In their innocence, Hadi found the honesty he was searching for.

Premiering at Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight, the film was warmly received for its mix of tenderness and realism. Critics praised its visual grace and emotional restraint, calling it one of the most distinctive debuts of the year. As The Film Stage wrote, “Among the best things in The President’s Cake are the colors: the deep red of a rooster’s comb, the golden haze of early light, captured with tenderness and precision.” (The Film Stage, Rory O’Connor, 2025).

A Hope for Iraq’s Voice on the World Stage

I truly hope this film reaches the stage of the Academy Awards as Iraq’s submission for Best International Feature. It is not only a work of cinema, but also an act of documenting history, a reflection of collective endurance and the fragile will to survive. Today, Iraq still struggles to speak freely about its past. Perhaps the growing global recognition of The President’s Cake can open that space, even slightly, for more honest voices to emerge from the country.

This festival, organized by the Oman Film Society, has grown into one of the few platforms in the region that gives voice to human stories often left behind. Films can be between 2 and 20 minutes, made in 2024 or 2025, and should reflect human values through their story or characters.

Submissions are open to all languages. English subtitles are required, and Arabic subtitles are needed for non-Arabic works. The final version must be uploaded online in MOV or MP4 (1080/1920p) format, ready for viewing.

The selected films will become part of the festival’s archive, a growing collection of voices exploring the lives of women and children through art. For many independent filmmakers, this event is a chance to connect, to be seen, and to show that small stories can move audiences far beyond borders.

• Deadline for submissions: 20 November 2025

• Festival dates: 15–18 December 2025

• Submittion link: Submit your film here

• Email: wcisfilm@gmail.com

In recent years, something has started to change. A quiet wave of films has appeared, made by directors who no longer wait for permission. Their works are raw, direct, and deeply personal. Many are produced outside Iran or in small independent crews inside the country. They do not pass through official ministries or wait for a stamp of approval. Yet these films find their way to audiences around the world who value honesty more than authorization.

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Censorship During the Pahlavi Era

In the Pahlavi years, censorship was part of the system. From the 1930s to the 1970s, every script had to be read and approved by the Ministry of Interior and later the Ministry of Culture and Arts. The rules were written in the name of morality, but the goal was control. Officials could cut any scene they believed offended social values or the image of the state.

By the 1960s and 1970s, when a new wave of thoughtful filmmakers emerged, censorship became more precise and political. The secret police, SAVAK, and cultural officials watched every film before release. Any hint of criticism toward the monarchy, the army, or the nation’s social problems could be blocked. Even love stories were edited for modesty. Films like Masoud Kimiai’s Qeysar and Nasser Taghvai’s Tranquility in the Presence of Others were delayed or banned for years. Dariush Mehrjui’s The Cow was almost buried for showing rural poverty until it won praise abroad and forced its way back to Iranian theaters.

For many filmmakers, censorship became a teacher. They learned to speak in layers, to hide meaning inside silence or poetry. That double language later became a hallmark of Iranian cinema.

Censorship After the 1979 Revolution

After the Revolution, the system of control did not disappear. It became deeper and more religious in tone. Every film now needed several permissions from the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance: one to write the script, one to shoot, and one to show it. The goal was to guard moral and political purity. But the result was a cinema wrapped in caution.

Censorship in this period was not only about subject matter. It extended to costumes, set design, and even visual details. Romantic scenes faced strict limits, and in the first decade after the Revolution, speaking about love was anything but simple. These restrictions created new definitions of storytelling. Families were shown without physical contact, and couples expressed emotion without a single embrace or kiss.

Filmmakers could not show romance, open hair, or life outside religious limits. Social criticism had to wear a mask. To speak about poverty or corruption, directors turned to metaphor. Through this struggle, a new cinematic language was born. Filmmakers like Abbas Kiarostami took a different path. They searched for truth within the boundaries of censorship and created a form of cinema that could move beside it rather than against it. Over time, society itself learned how to live with this phenomenon, especially in a culture shaped by Eastern values and collective traditions.

Ironically, the same rules that tried to limit them helped Iranian cinema earn respect abroad. Western audiences saw a quiet beauty in films that whispered instead of shouted. Out of restriction came poetry.

The Rise of the Uncensored Wave

Since the mid-2010s, a different kind of filmmaking has taken shape. Digital cameras and online platforms have made production faster, cheaper, and freer. A film can now be shot on a small set, edited on a laptop, and shared online or sent to festivals without passing through any authority. For young directors, the choice is simple: tell the truth or stay silent.

This new wave is still small but growing. Jafar Panahi made his latest film outside the rules and won a prize at Cannes. That same film is now competing for the Academy Award under France’s submission. Inside Iran, film guilds and unions have started to question the need for production licenses at all. The debate is open. Censorship is no longer a silent fact; it has become a public argument.

A clear sign of this change is the upcoming film Oh, What Happy Days! scheduled for the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival. It brings together Golshifteh Farahani, who is banned from returning to Iran, Navid Mohammadzadeh, one of Iran’s biggest stars, Peyman Maadi, and the legendary Ali Nassirian. For the first time, actors from both worlds share the same frame. It is more than a movie. It is a statement that cinema will go where freedom exists.

The Future of Iran’s Uncensored Cinema

This new cinema feels closer to the streets, to real people, to the rhythms of daily life. It does not try to represent an ideal version of the country. It shows what is actually there. For many viewers, that honesty feels like oxygen.

Yet the road ahead is not easy. Inside Iran, these films cannot be screened legally. Directors depend on festival circuits to earn back their budgets. Sanctions make international funding difficult, and many projects survive only through personal sacrifice. Still, success abroad is changing the balance. As global audiences discover uncensored Iranian films, more investors and partners may begin to look toward them.

The official, state-backed cinema will continue to exist, supported by public funds and institutions. But its relevance is shrinking. Around the world, interest has shifted toward the independent voices that speak freely. This is not a battle between two sides. It is an evolution. The heart of Iranian cinema is moving closer to truth, closer to freedom, and closer to the world.

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The call is open to all Iranian filmmakers, both inside and outside the country. Iranian filmmakers living abroad can submit their works under the Diaspora Filmmakers category, while those based in Iran should apply through the main section titled Best Short Film of the Year. All films will be evaluated equally by Fidan’s editorial team.

Unlike a festival, this is not a competition with prizes or screenings. Instead, it is a year-end editorial selection by Fidan’s critics to showcase the most notable Iranian shorts of the year. Finalists will be announced in two lists, semi-final and final, published exclusively on Fidan’s website.

The initiative is directed by Hadi Alipanah (@hadialipanah), founder and editor of Fidan. He is also the founder of the Eestar Cinephilia Portal and Director of Film Production and Distribution at Shahid Saless Cultural Art Institute. With years of experience as a film critic, Alipanah has played a key role in shaping Iran’s independent short film scene.

• Deadline for submissions: 30 February 2026

• Submit via: FilmFreeway – Fidan Magazine

I’ve always admired how Fidan keeps a steady, independent voice in Iranian cinema. This annual list has become something more than a ranking. It’s a reflection of how our filmmakers think, change, and experiment each year. It’s a quiet yet powerful space that documents the evolution of short filmmaking in Iran.

Launched in partnership with the Prince Claus Fund in Amsterdam and the Magnum Foundation in New York, the program has been nurturing voices that tell local, socially engaged stories through images since 2014.

Over the past decade, ADPP has become more than just a grant. It has built a growing network of Arab photographers who use their cameras to explore identity, inequality, memory, and daily life from their own perspectives. Many of its alumni have gone on to exhibit internationally, proving how powerful and necessary visual storytelling from the region can be.

This year’s edition continues that mission, offering $7,000 to up to eight photographers to develop or complete a documentary project in their home country. Along with funding, selected participants will receive mentorship from experienced photographers and attend three workshops designed to help them shape their ideas and reach wider audiences.

Applications are open to emerging photographers living and working in the Arab region, whether they are professionals or self-taught. The program welcomes both classic documentary and more experimental visual forms that blend photography with sound or video.

The application can be submitted in Arabic or English, and translation support will be provided throughout the process.

• Deadline for submissions: 10 December 2025 (5 PM Beirut time)

• Announcement of grantees: 3 April 2026

• Apply here: https://www.arabculturefund.org/Programs/17

I’ve been genuinely moved by the support from artists and friends for the launch of Souzian Dispatch.

It means a lot that you trust me with your stories. I’ll keep doing my best to share news and opportunities that can truly help you grow in your creative path.

Please feel free to send me your own updates and announcements at abbas@souzian.com.

The 15-minute film revisits the 2009 Green Movement protests in Tehran through personal footage and quiet reflection. It captures both the collective energy of those days and the personal silence that followed.

I’ve been following IDFA’s announcements closely this year; the festival features nearly 250 films from 76 countries, and this Iranian presence in the opening lineup of the shorts competition feels particularly meaningful.

The program also includes Intersecting Memory by Shayma’ Awawdeh from Palestine and happiness by Turkish filmmaker Firat Yücel.

Tickets will be available from 29 October at noon, with full screening details announced a few days earlier on festival.idfa.nl.

As someone actively tracking festival deadlines in this region, I recommend using the summer months to prepare and submit. Many of these festivals have deadlines that continue into late August, making this a strategic moment to get your work seen.

Below is a selection of active festivals in the Middle East and surrounding areas with submission deadlines through the end of August 2025:

BIAFF, Batumi International Art-House Film Festival

• Batumi, Georgia, 21–28 September 2025

• Deadline: 5 August 2025

• Dedicated to auteur and art-house cinema, with retrospectives, masterclasses, and international competitions.

• https://filmfreeway.com/BIAFF

Baku International Film Festival

• Baku, 7–12 November 2025

• Deadline: 1 August 2025

• Organized by Azerbaijan’s Young Filmmakers Center, focusing on new voices, human values, and regional identity.

• https://filmfreeway.com/BakuInternationalFilmFestival

Cyprus Comic Con Film Festival

• Nicosia, 4–5 October 2025

• Deadline: 25 August 2025

• Genre-focused shorts including sci-fi, fantasy, comedy, and animation, presented as part of Cyprus Comic Con.

• https://filmfreeway.com/CyprusComicConFilmFestival

Lebanese Independent Film Festival (LIFF)

• Beirut, 25–28 September 2025

• Deadline: 25 August 2025

• A festival for independent voices and cultural healing through cinema.

• https://filmfreeway.com/LIFF

Turkish World Documentary Film Festival

• Istanbul, 1–5 October 2025

• Deadline: 30 August 2025

• Documentary platform uniting filmmakers from Turkic-speaking countries and regions.

• https://filmfreeway.com/TurkishWorldDocumentaryFilmFestival

International Women’s Film Festival KIN

• Yerevan, 12–16 December 2025

• Deadline: 17 August 2025

• Celebrating women’s creativity and cinema as a tool for gender equality and cultural exchange.

• https://filmfreeway.com/InternationalWomensFilmFestivalKIN

Izmir International Short Film Festival (IISFF)

• Izmir, 27 October – 2 November 2025

• Deadline: 10 August 2025

• An Academy Award qualifying short film festival, first of its kind in Turkey.

• https://filmfreeway.com/IzmirInternationalShortFilmFestival

Izmit International Short Film Festival

• Izmit, 22–24 October 2025

• Deadline: 20 August 2025

• Supporting the short film ecosystem and highlighting young creators in an intimate festival setting.

• https://filmfreeway.com/IzmitInternationalShortFilmFestival

If you have other suggestions or know of additional festivals with open calls, feel free to share them in the comments.

The film, currently titled Forough: Let Us Believe in the Beginning of the Cold Season, will explore the turbulent life and artistry of Forough, one of Iran’s most groundbreaking cultural figures. The story is told backwards and through flashbacks, following a woman who struggles to find her voice in a world unwilling to face the uncomfortable truths of female desire and ambition.

Filmmakers

• Director & Producer: Tina Gharavi

• Writers: Tina Gharavi, Mischa Sadeghi

• Production Company: Bridge + Tunnel Productions (UK)

Tina Gharavi is a Sundance and BAFTA-nominated director and showrunner. She has worked across documentary and drama, with acclaimed credits including I Am Nasrine. Her career spans international projects, often focusing on outsiders, and bold voices. Gharavi is currently developing multiple international features, including this long-anticipated portrait of Forough.

Cast

• Zar Amir Ebrahimi as Forough

• Arian Moayed as Ebrahim Golestan

Zar Amir Ebrahimi, who won Best Actress at Cannes for Holy Spider, has become one of the most acclaimed Iranian talents on the global stage. She has also been recognized with awards at the Palm Springs International Film Festival and the Cinema for Peace Awards for her performance in Tatami (2023). Taking on the role of Forough Farrokhzad brings powerful resonance, linking one of today’s most courageous Iranian actresses with one of the country’s most revolutionary cultural icons.

Arian Moayed, an Iranian-American actor, producer, and director, will portray Ebrahim Golestan, the influential Iranian writer, translator, and filmmaker. He is known for his role as Stewy Hosseini in HBO’s Succession and for appearances in Marvel’s Spider-Man: No Way Home and Netflix’s Inventing Anna. Moayed has received Emmy and Screen Actors Guild nominations for his performances. His international reputation adds further weight to the project and highlights the cultural importance of Golestan, whose literary and cinematic legacy remains central to modern Iranian arts.

Production and Significance

The project is listed as an international co-production with ties to the United Kingdom, Denmark, France, and Greece. Bridge + Tunnel Productions, based in Newcastle, is serving as the lead production company. In July 2024, the film was selected for the Venice Gap-Financing Market, a prestigious industry platform at the Venice International Film Festival that connects projects in development with international investors and co-producers.

The international co-production highlights how Forough’s legacy continues to attract global attention. Her life and work inspire across literature, cinema, and women’s rights. Bringing her story to the screen with Zar Amir Ebrahimi in the lead and Arian Moayed as Ebrahim Golestan is set to be a landmark in Middle Eastern storytelling on film. With Tina Gharavi’s bold directorial approach, the project could resonate widely with international audiences.

What Comes Next

The film is still in pre-production and further announcements are expected in the coming months, including details on additional cast members, filming schedule, and international partners involved in distribution and financing. Many in the industry will be watching closely as the project develops in the coming months.