TEHRAN- Iranian film “Passion of Love” directed by Dariush Yari received an award at the 27th edition of the Religion Today Film Festival, which was held in Trento, Italy last week.

The movie was honored with the Honorary Presidents' Special Award for Interreligious Dialogue, recognized for its compelling narrative that tells a sacred story using innovative language and a strong focus on fostering encounters between religions, as announced by the organizers. 

“Passion of Love” narrates the poignant journey of the Karbala captives as they travel from Kufa to Sham. The story centers around Selma, a woman entrusted with the vital role of acting as the voice for the caravan of Karbala prisoners, particularly for Hazrat Zainab (SA). 

Selma is determined to educate and enlighten those who have been misled by Shimr and his deceived agents. Her mission is to ensure that the distinction between the oppressor and the martyr remains clear, preventing the truth from becoming obscured once again. As she raises the flag of Imam Hossein (AS) and leads the caravan alongside Hazrat Zeinab (SA), Selma ultimately becomes one of the loyal companions of Karbala, embodying the spirit of resilience and resistance.

Payam Ahmadinia, Reza Khodadad Beigi, Behzad Dorani, Bahram Ebrahimi, Nader Fallah, Mitra Khajeian, Roohollah Mehrabi, Shohreh Mousavi, Alireza Ostadi, Siamak Safari, Babak Vali, Mahdi Zaminpardaz, Shohreh Mousavi, Payam Ahmadinia, Behzad Dorani, Bahram Ebrahimi, Nader Fallah, Mitra Khajeian, Roohollah Mehrabi, Alireza Ostadi, and Siamak Safari are in the cast among others.

The 96-minute drama was the winner of Best Film in the Interfaith Section at the 42nd Fajr Film Festival earlier this year.

Moreover, Iranian animators Baran Sediqian won the Best Animation Award for her short animation “The Deer” and Mona Shams was awarded the Special Jury Mention for the short animation “Phoenix,” in this edition of the festival.

A production of 2023, “The Deer” is a five-minute animation with no dialogues. The life of the deer in this animation changes radically after getting injured by hunters. His old world no longer seems to fit him, so he decides to leave.

“Phoenix,” produced by the Documentary, Experimental, and Animation Cinema Expansion Center, delves into the concept of migration and leaving one's homeland. It was crafted using the actual voices of Iranian migrants across the world.

It is an animated documentary, six minutes, based on real sounds. The story of the film is about a person who decides to immigrate, and different voices of immigrants collected in documentary form narrate the feelings and events of the hero of the film.

In this edition of the festival, there were 64 films in competition, from 32 countries. The international jury was composed of leading professionals from the international film industry including producer and researcher Fateme Javhersaz from Iran.

Established in 1997 as the first Italian festival of spiritual cinema and inter-religious dialogue, the Religion Today Film Festival has come a long way, and today this appointment with religious cinema is well known and appreciated all over the world.

Religion Today is an international and itinerant film festival dedicated to religious diversity for a culture of peace and interfaith dialogue. It promotes a journey “exploring the differences”, both in religious practices and beliefs and in cinematic styles and languages, towards a mutual enrichment through reciprocal knowledge and comparison.

Together with the world cinema competition, open to any film with a religious connection, it offers a platform for exchanging ideas and viewpoints, including a “living workshop” involving filmmakers of different faiths and nationalities.

Photo: A scene from “Passion of Love” by Dariush Yari

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