International cinema has exclusive images that are profoundly rooted in a certain irreproducible culture. The future of Tajik cinema depends on the evolution of the country’s policies and principal ideologies.
Digital distribution platforms have transformed the way audiences watch films. With the notion of quality in mind, FCC created Watch Nook, an online collection of hand-picked quality titles from the Farsi-speaking region and its diaspora.
Despite the country’s harsh circumstances, the question surrounding gender and sexuality has been reflected in varied cultural forms such as literature, poetry, painting, and cinema within Iran. In this contributed article, Azadeh M.Kangarani reviews a few of the most influential Iranian queer films.
This genuinely creepy fright fest relies more on mood than cheap jump scares and with the backdrop of the Iran-Iraq war, and an unnerving folk tale to top it off, Under the Shadow is worth a look… but do approach with caution!
“We live in a diverse world, and to make it a better place to live in, we need to make diversity our strength -- not a divisive factor. We should be considerate to include every diverse perspective of all genders, ethnicities, cultures, and so forth, and give them an equal opportunity to voice their opinions and thoughts.”
“Many people I’ve met in my life have told me they had a negative image of Iran, but many also told me that through my work, I’ve helped them change it - Iranians will always put others first”
It is no secret that censorship is a reality consuming the Iranian artistic and cultural landscapes. And while some filmmakers flee the country to work and explore risky themes, it is home that draws the so-called censorship perpetrators back to Iran every single time.
The imaginative foundation of animation of a film medium strips away existing borders and penetrates cultural barriers, granting limitless control over an artistic vision. The magic of creating new and unseen universes takes away any preconceptions or restriction to free storytelling.
Making a profound and precious work of art in a foreign land can be an exciting odyssey only if the connections with one’s roots are filled with life. It is only then, that great artists can travel the world, observe and understand the other ways of life, and tell the stories of other lands and horizons in ways that will stay with us forever.