Iranian ‘The Badger’ shines at Riverside filmfest

Iranian movie ‘The Badger’ has won several awards at the 19th edition of the Riverside International Film Festival (RIFF) in the US.

The Iranian drama received awards in the categories of best audience, best actor, as well as the festival’s president award for its ensemble cast.

Vishka Asayesh received the jury award for best actor for her portrayal of Soudeh in the Iranian title. However, the award for best actress went to Kalok Tang from Macao for her role in ‘Patio of Illusion’, which also brought Shanghai Chen the award for best director.

Directed by Kazem Mollaee, ‘The Badger’ narrates the story of a 40-year-old woman who is facing a difficult challenge in her private life.

Soudeh’s 11-year-old son, Matiar, gets kidnapped as she is about to start a second marriage. After considerable search and effort, Soudeh decides to ask for the ransom money from her ex-husband, Peyman. How much will this incident challenge her certainties?

In addition to Asayesh, the flick's cast list includes names such as Hassan Majouni, Mehraveh Sharifinia, Behnoush Bakhtiyari, Reza Behboudi, and Gohar Kheirandish.

The 93-minute feature has gone on screen at some global events, including the Jaipur International Film Festival in India, the Sofia MENAR Film Festival in Bulgaria, the Dhaka International Film Festival in Bangladesh, the Winchester Film Festival in the UK, the Shanghai International Film Festival in China, the Salerno International Film Festival in Italy, and the Berkeley Video & Film Festival in the US, where it won the grand prize for the best foreign feature.

Set to compete at the Maryland Film Festival and the Queens World International Film Festival, both in the US, the movie has also received honors such as Best Film award at the BangkokThai International Film Festival, Best Narrative Film award at the Austin Film Festival, and an honorary diploma of the best film at the Fargo Film Festival, both in the US.

Annually since 2002, the RIFF has brought the best in contemporary international and independent films to southern California.

The RIFF seeks “diverse and challenging films of social upheaval, human conflict, and the boldness of the human spirit,” according to the official website of the event.

The 2021 edition of the event was held on April 27-May 1 in the Inland Empire region of Southern California.

Some other Iranian movies, including ‘Radde’ by Ali Lavari-Monfared, ‘Ava’s Silence’ by Seyyed-Gholamreza Nematpour, ‘The Blue Bed’ by Alireza Kazemipour, ‘Quit’ by Sina Ravi, and ‘A Boy Has Disappeared’ by Aida Alimadadi, were also screened at various sections of the event.

Read more:

‘The Badger’ releases trailer and photos

‘The Badger’ wins award at Fargo filmfest

‘The Badger’ hailed at Austin Film Festival

BangkokThai Int’l Film Festival awards ‘The Badger’

‘The Badger’ crowned best at Berkeley Video and Film Festival

MG/AG