Directed by Mehdi Shamohammadi and produced by Owj Arts and Media Organization, the film centers on the courageous actions of Mehdi Zeinoddin, one of the notable martyrs of Iran who rose to leadership at a young age during the Iran-Iraq war (1980-1989), particularly on Majnoon Island during the Khaybar operation.

The film also brought Maestro Majid Entezami the Crystal Simorgh for best composer during the closing ceremony of the festival held at Milad Tower on Sunday evening.

Additionally, Behzad Khalaj and Shabnam Qorbani won best supporting actor and actress awards for their roles in “Majnoon”.

Behrouz Afkhami was awarded best director for his work on “The Morning of The Execution”, which explores the final moments of Tayyeb Haj Rezai and Esmaeil Rezai after the 1963 uprising.

Arastou Khoshrazm also won the best actor award for the film.

The best actress award went to Maral Bani-Adam for her role in “Parvin”.

Directed by Mohammadreza Varzi, the film is about the life story of Parvin Etesami (1907-1940), one of the most prominent Persian poets of the 20th century.

Kouhyar Kalari was honored with the best cinematographer award for “Summer of the Same Year” by Mahmoud Kalari.

Kamyab Amin Ashayeri and Mehrnoush Bayani received best set design and best costume design awards for their collaboration on the film.

Hassan Hassandoust was recognized as the best editor for “Parviz Khan” directed by Ali Saqafi, who also received an honorable mention for best screenplay.

Morteza Kohzadi was named best makeup artist for “Ahmad”, directed by Amir Abbas Rabiei, and Mohammad Baradaran won the best visual effects award for his work on the same film.

In the New Outlook Section of the festival, “Parviz Khan” was named best first film, while Javad Ezzati received the Crystal Simorgh for the best director for his debut directorial “Blood Alligator”.

In the Cinema Salvation, the international section of the festival, Crystal Simorgh for the best film was awarded to “Blaga’s Lessons”, directed by Stephan Komandarev from Bulgaria.

The film recounts the story of Blaga, a seventy-year-old recently widowed former teacher with strong morals. When telephone scammers deceive her out of money she had saved for her husband’s grave, her moral compass gradually begins to falter.

Alejandro Rojas and Juan Sebastián Vasquez from Spain were honored with the best director award for their film “Upon Entry.”

The movie depicts the challenges faced by Diego, a Venezuelan urbanist, and Elena, a contemporary dancer from Barcelona, as they encounter difficulties at Newark Airport while embarking on a new life in the United States.

“The Best Century of My Life” from Italy earned director and writer Alessandro Bardani the Crystal Simorgh for the best script, while the award for outstanding artistic contribution was presented to Angelo Rallis for “Mighty Afarin: In Time of Flood,” a co-production from Greece and Bangladesh.

In this segment, Mahmoud Kalari from Iran received the special jury award for his film “Summer of the Same Year.”

Photo: Left to right, up: Behrouz Afkhami, Arastou Khoshrazm, Javad Ezzati, Maral Bani-Adam, Behzad Khalaj, Shabnam Qorbani

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As opposed to previous years, when the names of the films participating in the festival were revealed earlier, the lineup of this edition of the festival was released on Thursday.

Twenty-four films are scheduled to compete in the festival, which will be held from February 1 to 11.

“The Case Is Open” by Kiumars Purahmad, “Why Don’t You Cry” by Alireza Motamedi, and “The Stranger” by Mohammad-Hossein Latifi are the highlights of the lineup.

“The Case Is Open” portrays the case of Behnud Shojai, who was convicted of murder when he was still a teenager and had not yet reached the legal age. After four years in prison and reaching the legal age of 18 in 2008, he was executed.

“Why Don’t You Cry”, with a cast of prominent actors, tells the story of a man who has lost the ability to cry, and the effect it has on his life.

Produced by the Owj Arts and Media Organization, “The Stranger” portrays the IRGC commander Mohammad Borujerdi’s struggles against separatists in western Iran to maintain the territorial integrity in the region in the early 1980s.

The lineup also includes “Cinema Metropol” by Mohammad-Ali Bashe-Ahangar, “Vabel” by Turaj Aslani, “High Power” by Hadi Mohammadpur, “Number Ten” by Hamid Zargarnejad, “Master” by Seyyed Emad Hosseini and “Leather Jacket” by Hossein Mirzamohammadi.

The Fajr Film Festival is organized every year from February 1 to 11 to commemorate the anniversary of the Islamic Revolution.

Fajr’s international section categories split from the festival in 2014, when the Cinema Organization of Iran, which is affiliated with the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, the main organizer of the event, announced that the international competition would be held separately from the national section for the first time in 2015.

Photo: Actor Babak Hamidian acts in a scene from “The Stranger” by Mohammad-Hossein Latifi

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He was a graduate of acting from the University of Tehran.

Born in 1941, Purhosseini had played in over 100 films, theatrical productions, and TV series in collaboration with famous filmmakers including Bahram Beizai, Masud Kimiai, Davud Mirbaqeri, Ali Hatami, and Kamal Tabrizi.

Voice actor Jalilvand lent his voice to Marlon Brando and Paul Newman in many acclaimed movies.

Jalilvand had voiced Burt Lancaster, Richard Burton, Bruce Willis, and Ed Harris, as well as some Iranian actors including Behruz Vosuqi, Mohammad-Ali Fardin, and Nasser Malak-Motiei.

He also lent his voice to most of the characters played by Jamshid Mashayekhi in the movies and TV series.

He began his artistic career with theater along with Abolhassan Tahami, who is also famous for his long career in voice acting.

He left the country after the Islamic Revolution and lived in America for about 20 years, however, he returned home and began his voice acting career in 1999.

He had also acted in several films and TV series.

Fajr president Mohammad-Mehdi Tabatabainejad said earlier that the festival, which is Iran’s major film event, will be organized on its regular date from January 31 to February 10, 2021.

Among the members of the jury of the official competition are Nima Javidi, director of the acclaimed drama “The Warden”, and Sareh Bayat, star of the Asghar Farhadi’s Oscar-winning drama “A Separation”.

On the jury also is Bahram Tavakkoli, director of the acclaimed war drama “The Lost Strait”, which was highly acclaimed at the Fajr festival in 2018, earning awards in six categories including best film and best director. He is also the director of “Gholamreza Takhti”, a biopic about legendary Iranian wrestler Gholamreza Takhti.

Mostafa Kiai, director of the comedy film “Motreb”, which has become Iran’s box office hit of the year by grossing 380 billion rials (about $9 million) in 2020, has also been selected for the jury.

The jury is also composed of cinematography director Morteza Pursamadi, producer Jamal Sadatian and cultural manager Mohammad Ehsani.

This year, besides, seven productions from the Owj Arts and Media Organization, a major institution that produces revolutionary works in art and cinema, will be screened at the festival.

They include the spy movie “The Government Expediency” by Hossein Darabi, “Karo” by Ahmad Moradpur and “Mansur” by Siavash Sarmadi.

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According To Iran News, The 38th edition of Fajr Film Festival has announced the members of jury panel for its main competition section.

The jury is comprised of filmmakers Narges Abyar, Fereydoun Jeyrani, Maziar Miri and Mohammad Mehdi Asgarpour, cinematographer Touraj Aslani, production designer Abbas Belondi, actor Saeed Rad, film critic Tahmaseb Solhjou and cultural director Reza Pourhossein.

By the order of the festival secretary Ebrahim Daroughezadeh, the 9-member jury will evaluate 22 feature films selected for the main competition section.

Established in 1982, the FFF is an event that displays achievements of Iranian cineastes.

Since its establishment, the festival has played a vital role in the development of the Iranian cinema.

The 38th FFF will kick off February 1. Film screenings will continue for 10 days in Tehran and several other cities and the winners of various categories will be awarded at the closing ceremony in Tehran on February 11.

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The 37th Fajr Film Festival, Iran’s major cinematic event, named winners during a closing ceremony on Mon. evening, with Narges Abyar’s ‘Night of the Full Moon’ winning as many as six main awards.

Fajr Film Festival is the most important, most anticipated and longest-running cinematic event of Iran, which was founded in 1983 and is organized every year by Farabi Cinema Foundation under the supervision of the ministry of culture.

The festival this year, in its 37th run, had an interesting line-up, to say the least. From the director of fan-favorite ‘Life and A Day’, Saeed Roustayi – whose latest feature ‘6.5 Each Meter’ starring household names Payman Moadi and Navid Mohammadzadeh won the Audience Award – to ‘Midday Adventures’ sequel, ‘Trace of Blood’, and of course ‘Night of the Full Moon’, the latest film by the female director and screenwriter Narges Abyar, whose successful results with ‘Track 143’ and ‘Breath’ had already raised much expectations about her newest cinematic endeavor.

Last night’s award ceremony directed its spotlight on Abyar’s ‘Night of the Full Moon’ for the most part. The film won Best Director, Best Film, Best Actor (Houtan Shakiba), Best Actress (Elnaz Shakerdoust), Best Supporting Actress (Freshteh Sadr Erfaei), and Best Make-Up (Iman Omidvari) awards.

The film narrates the true story of Abdul-Hamid Rigi, the younger brother of Abdul-Malik Rigi, the founder and leader of the Jundallah terrorist group in southeastern Iran, who marries Faezeh Mansuri, a woman from Tehran. He forces Faezeh to leave her homeland along with her brother to live in Pakistan where they find themselves involved in the Jundallah terrorist activities.

‘Midday Adventures: Trace of Blood’ directed by Mohammad Hossein Mahdavian, was the second most award-winning title of the festival, along with ‘6.5 Each Meter’ and ‘Maskhareh-baz’ (‘Doofus’). The sequel to ‘Midday Adventures’ won Best Special Effects (Iman Kariman), Best Costume Design (Mohammadreza Shojaee), and Best Sound Mixing (Mehrshad Malakouti).

‘6.5 Each Meter’ by Saeed Roustayi, meanwhile, won the Best Audience award. It also won the Best Sound Editing (Iraj Shahzadi), and Best Editing (Bahram Dehghani) awards.

‘Maskhareh-baz’ by Amir Homayoun Ghanizadeh also won three awards for Best Visual Effects (Javad Motouri), Best Supporting Actor (Ali Nasirian), and Best Art and Best Experimental Film awards.

Other winners of the 37th Fajr Film Festival include ‘Gholamreza Takhti’ by Ali Hatami and Behrouz Afkhami (Best Scenic Design and Best Cinematography), ‘Qasr-e Shirin’ by Reza Mirkarimi (Best Film Score and Best Script), ‘The Warden’ by Nima Javidi (Special Jury Award), ‘The Last Fiction’ by Ashkan Rahgozar (Best Animation), ‘Baharestan: House of Nation’ by Babak Behdad (Best Documentary) and ‘Pedovore’ by Mohammad Kart (Best Short Film Award).

‘Maskhareh-baz’ also won the best film award in the ‘New Vision’ section of the festival.

The 37th Fajr Film Festival ran from 1–11 February 2019 at a number of major venues in capital Tehran and some metropolitan cities across the country.

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Takhti was found dead at a hotel room in Tehran in 1968 and the Persian dailies Kayhan and Ettelaat reported that he has committed suicide for his unhappy domestic life. However, a large group of people also believed that he was killed by the SAVAK intelligence services due to his disloyalty to the Shah regime.

This is the second movies puts its spotlight on Takhti’s life story, but his death still remains a mystery.

“Takhti’s death whether he was killed or committed suicide has always been the main topic in Iran,” director Bahram Tavakkoli said in a press conference on Wednesday after the premiere of his film “Gholamreza Takhti” at the Fajr festival.

“In my opinion, what is important about Takhti is his way of life that made him eternal,” he added.

In “Gholamreza Takhti”, Tavakkoli confirms that Takhti has killed himself.

“At the beginning of the film, we unlock the mystery that has always occupied the minds of our people and then recount his life story,” Tavakkoli said.

“If people carry out a research about Takhti’s life, they will find this answer about his death, because there numerous sources and documents about this issue,” he added.

Tavakkoli’s previous film “The Lost Strait” that recounts the true story of Iran’s Ammar Battalion’s epic operation during the last days of the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war was highly acclaimed at the Fajr festival last year.

Ali Hatami, known as the Hafez of Iranian cinema due to the native and poetic ambiance of his movies, was the first director who chose Takhti’s life story to turn into a film during the 1980s.

He began shooting the film titled “World Champion Takhti”, but it remained unfinished due to Hatami’s death in 1996.

Director Behruz Afkhami was then selected to complete the film, which critics called it a good thriller that failed to solve the mystery of Takhti’s death.

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“The Main Idea” by Azita Mogui, “African Violets” by Mona Zandi-Haqiqi, “Polo Coat” by Mehdi Alimirzai, “Jamshidieh” by Yalda Jebeli and “Blade and Termeh” by Kiumars Purahmad are among the competing films.

The lineup also includes “Tala” by Parviz Shahbazi, “Takhti” by Bahram Tavakkoli, “Oath” by Mohsen Tanabandeh, “A Man without Shadow” by Alireza Reisian and “Symphony No. 9” by Mohammadreza Honarmand.

The festival will also screen three animated films, “The Last Story” by Ashkan Rahgozar, “Benjamin” by Mohsen Enayati and “Sunny Night” by Seyyed Ali Madani, as well as seven short films.

The official lineup was announced at a press conference, during which veteran actor Jamshid Mashayekhi joined the president of the festival, Ebrahim Darughezadeh, to unveil the official poster of the event designed by Soheil Beidaqi.

The 37th Fajr Film Festival will take place in Tehran and several other Iranian cities from January 30 to February 11./mehrnews

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The lineup for the New Look section includes “Polo Coat”, a comedy by Mehdi Alimirzai that is about a philosophy student who has inherited a coat from his father. Evil thoughts pop into his head when he puts on the coat.

Cinematographer Turaj Aslani’s directorial debut “Gold Carrier” will also have its Iranian premiere at the event. The film has previously been screened in several international events.

It is about Reza, a gold runner who delivers gold pieces after work to retailers. Delivering the gold as usual one day, a group of gangs hit him and steal the gold pieces. The owner of the retail business demands paying back, but Reza has no way to pay him back. Hearing from his friend Louie that there is an expensive jewel somewhere on the floor of a traditional toilet in the workshop, Reza uses the money from the aid group to bid on the workshop at an auction.

Arash Lahuti’s acclaimed drama “Orange Days” will also screen in this section. The film is about Aban, the only female contractor in the cutthroat and male-dominated orange harvesting industry, who enters a competition to win a large contract.

Stage director Homayun Ghanizadeh will also compete with his screen debut “The Clown” while actor Pulad Kimiai will join the festival with his directorial debut “Reverse”.

The lineup also includes “Yalda”, which is the second feature movie by Masud Bakhshi. He made his debut in 2012 with “A Respectable Family”.

“Tsunami” by Milad Sadr-Ameli, “Snake Venom” by Javad Razavian, “Watching This Film Is a Crime” by Reza Zehtabchi and “Creature” co-directed by Hossein Amiri and Pedram Puramiri are other entries to the New Look category.

The 37th Fajr Film Festival will take place in Tehran and several other Iranian cities from February 1 to 11.

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The films have been chosen out of 67 submissions, the secretary of the festival, Ebrahim Darughezadeh, said in a press conference.

“Dark Room” by director Ruhollah Hejazi, “Istanbul Intersection” by Mostafa Kiai, “Woodpecker” by Behruz Shoeibi, “Cold Sweat” by Soheil Beyarqi and “At Damascus Time” by Ebrahim Hatamikia are among the competing films.

Also included are “Bomb” by Peyman Moaadi, “Emperor of Hell” by Parviz Sheikh-Tadi, “Highlight” by Asghar Naimi, “Old Road” by Manijeh Hekmat and “Truck” by Kambozia Partovi.

“The Elephant King”, an animated film by Hadi Mohammadian is one the highlights of the lineup.

In addition, the documentary films “Iran’s Lady Qods” by Mostafa Razzaq-Karimi and “Women with Gunpowder Earrings” by Reza Farahmand will compete in the festival, which is Iran’s major event in the motion picture industry.

Photo: Ebrahim Hatamikia directs a scene from “At Damascus Time”, which will be screened in the official competition of the 36th Fajr Film Festival.

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