TEHRAN – The Iranian Academy of Arts (IAA) paid tribute to director Mohammad-Hossein Latifi by presenting him with its IAA Plaque of Glory on Monday.

He received the plaque for his latest movie “The Stranger” about IRGC commander Mohammad Borujerdi’s struggles against separatists in western Iran to maintain Iran’s territorial integrity in the region in the early 1980s.

The movie entitled “The Stranger” has been produced at the Owj Arts and Media Organization by Mohammad-Hossein Latifi, director of the acclaimed war film “The Third Day”.

In addition, the academy also honored Borujerdi’s daughter Somayyeh, and Nosratollah Mahmudzadeh, the author of the book “Mohammad, the Christ of Kordestan”, based on which the film was produced. 

“The film stirs up the strongest emotions as Mr. Latifi has reproduced the reality of these eternal scenes perfectly,” IAA director Bahmand Namvar-Motlaq said.

“Watching these scenes causes one to recall the virtually forgotten memories of the war in the region,” he added.

“We may approach the film from many different angles and the academy must study the different views,” Namvar-Motlaq noted.

He also praised Latifi for selecting the film’s title based on the method Mahmudzadeh adopted to describe Borujerdi in his book.

After accepting the plaque, Latifi said, “I feel proud when I see my work has had an impressively positive reception by viewers.”

“Despite all the hardships our crew suffered during the film’s production, we felt great satisfaction when Martyr Borujerdi’s family was favorably impressed by the film,” he added.

“The Stranger” scored a big win at the National Will Manifestation Awards by garnering five prizes.

The gala is a supplement to the Fajr Film Festival and the awards are presented by public organizations and institutes to those films that are in agreement with their goals and interests.

Oscar-nominated director Majid Majidi was the first personality honored with the first edition of the IAA Plaque of Glory in 2021.

He received the plaque for his acclaimed drama “Sun Children” about child labor.

Photo: Director Mohammad-Hossein Latifi speaks after accepting the IAA Plaque of Glory in Tehran on May 29, 2023.

MMS/YAW