TEHRAN – The real-life drama “The Sniper”, which portrays Abdorrasul Zarrin who was one of the most lethal snipers in the Iranian forces during the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war, will be contending for a Crystal Simorgh during the 39th Fajr Film Festival.

“Despite the pandemic restrictions, the shooting of the project has been completed,” producer Ebrahim Asgahri said in a press release on Wednesday.

Actors from Egypt, Nigeria, Ivory Coast and Senegal also star as Iraqi snipers in the film directed by Ali Ghaffari, the director of the acclaimed 2012 historical thriller “Reclamation”.

“The film portrays a national hero, and I hope it is warmly received by filmgoers and helps the war film genre to be recognized in Iran again,” Asghari noted.

Kambiz Dirbaz stars as Zarrin in the film, which was first titled “Hunting of the Hunter”.

Born in 1941 in a village near the town of Qalegol, Kohkiluyeh-Boyerahmad Province, Abdorrasul Zarrin lost his parents in childhood and his uncle retained custody of him.

He left his uncle’s home to find a job in the central Iranian city of Isfahan when he was a young adult. His paternal relatives helped him find a job, and with all his savings, he opened a clothing store. 

Abdorrasul soon married and had seven children by the beginning of the war, when he joined the IRGC on the warfront.

With his pinpoint accuracy, Abdorrasul saved countless lives of Iranian forces on the battlefield, and was turned into a legend among his fellow Iranian comrades.

He was martyred during Operation Kheibar in 1984 and the Iraqi radio announced their forces had killed “Khomeini’s Hunter”.

Photo: Kambiz Dirbaz acts in a scene from “The Sniper” directed by Ali Ghaffari.

MMS/YAW