According to Centercinemapress and quoted from the public relations of the Iranian Film Festival in Zurich, the 8th edition of the International Iranian Film Festival in Zurich ended with the announcement of the best of this edition by the jury and awarded its honorary golden charter to Aida Pahanandeh, who was the guest of this edition of the festival. was also donated

This charter was awarded to the refugee due to his special attention to the issue of women’s social rights in his films
In the feature films section, the jury selected the film “Final Zone” directed by Berdia Yadgari and Ehsan Mirhosseini as the selected work, and the Golden Charter of Cyrus was awarded to this film as the main prize of the festival. The two directors of this film, who were present at the festival, received their award from the judges of this event
The jury’s statement about this film states: A city threatened by an unknown virus and climate change is placed under quarantine. In this scary environment, the main character of the film named Peyman, who is an unsuccessful poet, maintains a balance on the narrow border between reality and madness, and we reach the balance with him. This movie is a bit of a challenge, but if you dare to take on the challenge, it will stick in your mind for a long time
Also, the film “The End of Evin” by Mehdi and Mohammad Torabbigi received special recognition from the jury in the feature film section of this period of the International Iranian Film Festival in Zurich
The jury’s statement about this film reads: The starting point of this film is powerful and unique, and this uniqueness is due to the fact that the directors of the film, Mehdi and Mohammad Torabbigi, have decided to film the entire film from the perspective of Amin, the main character. And we believe that this action has been a convincing and integrated method; So that we, like Amin’s body, are exposed to the penetrating and searching gaze of others, and we are also placed in an enclosed environment until the end of the story

Short film category winners

But in the short films section of this period, the jury of the festival, after a long discussion, decided to announce two films as the winners of this section. For this reason, the films “Tahatar” directed by Ziba Karamali and Emad Arad and “Aroosk” directed by Elaha Esmaili received the main prize of this section
In the statement of the jury of the short film section, it is stated: Both the films Tahtar and Doll have boldly expressed conflicts and moral dilemmas within families. These two films made us experience different emotions, they surprised us and made us think about their issue
The jury praised Tahtar as follows: In the short film “Tahtar”, the filmmakers succeed in portraying the hierarchy and dynamics of the pillars of power and how it changes quickly among the members of a family. Ziba Karamali and Emad Arad have been able to create three-dimensional characters in this film, none of which are perfect and all of them are tangible and understandable
The jury also praised the film “Doll”: We felt the same way about the next winner of this category, “Doll” by Elaha Esmaili, a documentary about the controversial and global issue of underage marriage. In a very unique approach, Esmaili allows the members of his target family to discuss whether Asal, the 14-year-old girl in the film, is marriageable or not
This movie also caused us to go through different emotions from sense of humor and humor to anger and it leaves a lasting impression on us

“Tonight’s Practice”; The best documentary of the 8th Iranian Film Festival in Zurich

In the category of documentary films of the festival, the film Mashak Nazam by Ashkan Nejati and Mehran Nematollahi was the main winner, and by the decision of the festival’s secretary, the Golden Charter of Cyrus was also assigned to this documentary. The documentary “Hazar Zan” made by Mojgan Ilanlo was also specially recognized by the jury
The jury’s statement about the awards in this section reads as follows: First of all, we would like to congratulate the creators of all the films in the festival and thank them for the insight and views they provided us. We are happy to announce that the film “Tonight’s Exercise” co-produced by Ashkan Nejati and Mehran Nematollahi has been selected as the best documentary film of this festival period
This film strictly adheres to a specific policy in its style and structure, and the quality and openness of the interviews inside it are stunning. In this documentary, we see and feel the hopes, dreams and fears of children, and with the experiences of these children, we gain recognition of Iranian society as a larger group
The statement goes on to say: The documentary “A Thousand Women” by Mozhgan Ilanlo, also selected in this section of the festival, has a unique and impressive look at the life of women in Iran. This film focuses on women from different backgrounds who are eager to reach the national level in Iranian sports. With its well-conveyed energy, A Thousand Women is a powerful and personal documentary that weaves intimate moments, intense physical contests, and poetic imagery into one grand, cohesive ensemble
Also, during this period of the festival, Aida Pahanandeh, a female Iranian cinematographer, was honored with the award of Cyrus Golden Cylinder or Prism. In this period of the festival, Panahandeh also held a master class on the topic of “Women’s Role in Iranian Cinema”
So far, the golden charter of this festival has been awarded to the influential people of Iranian cinema, including Dariush Mehrjooi, Fatemeh Motamedarya and Mehtab Karamat
The eighth edition of the International Iranian Film Festival in Zurich, Switzerland, under the direction of Yadullah Daj, started on May 26th with a special screening of Dariush Mehrjooi’s “Cow” and ended on June 1st, 2022