TEHRAN – Six Iranian movies will be screened in various categories of the International Film Festival Rotterdam as the organizer has recently unveiled the lineup for the 2023 edition of the event.

“Killing a Traitor” by Masud Kimiai has been picked to compete in Harbour, a section echoing Rotterdam’s port city identity, offering a safe haven to the full range of contemporary cinema that the festival champions.

Poignant and expressive, this sepia-tinted melodrama takes us into the turbulent streets of 1950s Iran during the nationalization of the oil industry by Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddeq. Faced with an oil embargo and a plunging economy, the people are asked to support the government by buying bonds. A scheme by working-class citizens to take money from the Iranian National Bank and give it to the prime minister to prop up the economy goes awry, leaving the gang torn by partisan ideology, morality and greed.

“Endless Borders”, a co-production with Czech directed by Abbas Amini, will be screened in the Big Screen Competition.

This section is a diverse competition bridging the gap between popular, classic and art house cinema. An expert audience of jury members picks the winner.

Directed by Amir Tuderusta, “Numb” will be showcased in the Tiger Competition. This section is IFFR’s trademark competition, celebrating the innovative and adventurous spirit of up-and-coming filmmakers from all over the world.

“Scented Rooms” by Shauheen Daneshfar has been selected for the Short & Mid-length competition.

“Beyond the Fences of Lalehzar” by Amen Feizabadi and “No Bears” by Jafar Panahi will be screened in different sections of the festival, which will take place from January 25 to February 5, 2023, in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

The festival offers a high-quality line-up of carefully selected fiction and documentary feature films, short films and media art.

Photo: “Killing a Traitor” by Masud Kimiai.

MMS/YAW