TEHRAN – Iranian love drama “The Daughter of Iran” has been selected as best feature movie at the 52nd Roshd International Film Festival in Tehran.

Producer Hamed Bamorovvatnejad received the golden statue of the international competition in the closing ceremony at Felestin Cinema on Sunday evening.

Written and directed by Jalal Ashkezari, the film narrates a love story of an Iranian soldier during the 1980s when Iraq launched a long bloody war against Iran.

The Roshd festival is organized annually by the Ministry of Education to promote films on educational topics for children.

The silver statue of this section was awarded to “I Will Return”, a drama about the COVID-19 pandemic by Iranian director Morteza Atashzamzam.

The film tells the story of Fereshteh, a little girl whose parents are working as a doctor and anurse in a hospital during the pandemic. Her father dies from the virus, and now she worries about her mother’s health. 

“Aram” by Ruhollah Fakhru won the golden statue for best short, and “Mattress” by Arash Hassanpur and “Empty Space” by Nasim Asadpur shared the silver statue for best short.

The golden statue for best animation was awarded to “The Lovely Sky” directed and written by Amir Mehran.

In this Iranian drama, an impatient fighter pilot bombs cities every day. He returns to his little girl every night after completing his mission. The girl loves to fly, but the father doesn’t fulfill his daughter’s dream because of the bitter memory of his wife’s death. The war is getting closer every day. One day an incident changes their lives forever.

“Playground” by Samaneh Asadi from Iran won the silver statue for best animation movie.

The golden statue for best feature documentary went to “Mila’s Angels” by Russian director Anastasia Trofimova.

Mila Anoufrieva was a fashion icon, an influential businesswoman who wasn’t afraid to take off her rose-colored glasses to look at the real world. In Dakar and throughout Senegal, this strange Russian is well known; many people call her “the angel of albinos”. Every day she saves children from prostitution and slavery, and from mutilation ordered by local shamans. In Africa, it is believed that the blood of albinos has healing properties. Albinos are hunted, crippled and body parts sold in the market as medicine.

“Death Behind the Green Wall” by Iranian filmmaker Mehdi Zamanpur Kiasari from Iran won the silver statue for best feature documentary.

This documentary warns about threats from the waste left untreated in the forests and on the beaches in northern Iran.

Zamanpur Kiasari’s “Water, Wind, Dust, Bread” also received the golden statue for best short documentary and “The Devotees” by Javad Yaqmuri and Mehdi Amir from Iran was awarded the silver statue for best short documentary.

Several films in different categories were also granted honorable mentions.

Photo: Afarain Obeisi, Gelareh Abbasi and Kurosh Tahami act in a scene from “The Daughter of Iran”.

MMS/YAW