TEHRAN – The psychological mystery thriller “Cause of Death: Unknown” directed by Ali Zarnegar has been officially selected as Iran’s submission to the 2026 Academy Awards in the best international feature film category.

The decision was made after the selection committee at the Farabi Cinema Foundation, which operates under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, evaluated all the eligible movies screened locally since last October, ISNA reported.

The nine-member committee unanimously chose “Cause of Death: Unknown” from among the five final contenders to represent Iran at the 2026 Oscars. 

The panel comprised figures in Iranian cinema, including directors Abolhassan Davoodi and Mostafa Kiaei, documentary filmmaker Azadeh Mousavi, actress Pantea Panahiha, actor Ali Dehkordi, screenwriter Farhad Tohidi, director of photography Hooman Behmanesh, sound designer Mohammad Reza Delpak, and deputy of the international affairs at Farabi Mohammad Reza Tashakori.

The other finalists included the feature films “The Old Bachelor” directed by Oktay Baraheni, “Woman and Child” by Saeed Roustayi, “Call Me Ziba” by Rasul Sadr Ameli, and “Raha” by Hesam Farahmand.

The film follows a group of strangers traveling through Iran’s Lut Desert. When one of them suddenly dies in the middle of the night, emergency services refuse to send an ambulance because the cause of death hasn’t been verified by a doctor. Searching the body, the men find no ID but a lot of money and are forced to confront a moral and ethical dilemma: Do they bring the body to a hospital or bury the corpse and split the cash?

Set against the backdrop of a life-and-death crisis, the film delves into themes of morality, survival, and the complex interplay of human nature when faced with an unknown and dire situation. 

The movie examines the social realities of the era in which it was produced, showing the struggles and crises that people must overcome in order to uphold their morality and humanity. It provides a representation of social history and cultural identity that reflects the moral principles of the Iranian people.

“Cause of Death: Unknown” addresses social problems that are pervasive in Iranian society and provides a critical analysis of the struggles that both individuals and communities encounter. The movie sheds light on Iran's cultural and historical context by demonstrating morality and humanity.

The 106-minute film has Banipal Shoomoon, Alireza Sanifar, Neda Jebraeili, Ali Mohammad Radmanesh, Zakieh Behbahani, Reza Amouzad, Soheil Bavi, Saeed Rezaeikia, Milad Moradi, Ashkan Ashoori, and Sahar Babaei in the cast, among others.

“Cause of Death: Unknown” premiered at the Shanghai Film Festival in 2023, where it won the best cinematography prize for cameraman Davood Malek Hosseini. 

Earlier this year in February, the movie won the Audience Favorite Film Award at the 3rd Iranian Film Festival New York.

The film has also garnered international recognition, with screenings at festivals like the Torino Underground Cinefest in Italy, the Pigeon International Film Festival in Iceland, the Girona Film Festival in Spain, and the Monadnock International Film Festival in the U.S., as well as winning Best Feature Film at the Iranian Film Festival of Zürich. 

A total of three films submitted by Iran have so far secured Oscar nominations in the best foreign film category: Majid Majidi’s “Children of Heaven” in 1999, and Asghar Farhadi’s “A Separation” and “The Salesman,” both of which won in 2012 and 2017, respectively.

Submissions to the Best International Feature Film category for the 98th Academy Awards have been rolling in at a steady pace since mid-August, with the battle heating up in the category earlier than in past years.

An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture (over 40 minutes) produced outside the U.S. with a predominantly (more than 50%) non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.

Submitted films must have been released theatrically in their respective countries between October 1, 2024, and September 30, 2025. The deadline for submissions to the Academy is October 1, 2025.

A total of 86 countries submitted films to the category for the 97th Academy Awards, with 15 making the shortlist and five eventually nominated. Brazil’s “I’m Still Here” directed by Walter Salles scooped the Oscar in the category.

The Academy will announce the first shortlist of 15 films in contention for the 2026 best international feature Oscar on December 16, 2025. The final nominations will be announced on January 22, 2026. The 98th Academy Awards Ceremony will take place in Los Angeles on March 15, 2026.

 Photo: A scene from “Cause of Death: Unknown”

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