Hungary’s Mediawave Gathering reviewing Iranian films

The 2022 edition of the Mediawave Gathering, an international film and music festival in Hungary, has been reviewing eight films by Iranian directors.

The lineup includes the short documentaries ‘Nomad Girl’ by Rouhollah Akbari, ‘I Want to Study!’ by Ramtin Kouchaki and ‘Zarafshoun’ by Mehdi Rajabian.

‘Nomad Girl’ follows the daughter of one of the nomadic tribes, who, despite all the problems caused by the traditions and common beliefs about girls exercising, achieves much success in kickboxing. She tries to persuade the families of the girls in the area to encourage them to attend training classes in a nomad “black tent”.

‘I Want to Study!’ shows many students amid the COVID-19 pandemic in Iran, who have to walk great distances to reach locations where they can connect to the internet to attend their online classes.

In ‘Zarafshoun’, an unmarried middle-aged woman living with her family in a forest region in northern Iran talks about her desires and attachments.

In the informative and TV documentaries section, ‘Gavchah’ directed by Kamran Rasoulzadeh has been chosen to be screened.

The film is a genuine portrayal of one of the ancient Iranian traditional methods of agricultural irrigation that relies on the interaction between a man and a cow. A strong connection between the animal and its owner is established by their own way of communication.

‘Balora’ by Abdolqader Khaledi is on screen in the music documentaries section. In the film, the director and her group are looking for people who may have information about a particular style of old and forgotten Kurdish singing.

The festival is also screening ‘Where the Winds Die’ by Pejman Alipour, ‘Water, Wind, Dust, Bread’ by Mehdi Zamanpour-Kiasari, and ‘Grape Season’ by Behrouz Khorram.

The Mediawave Gathering was launched on a community basis in 2011. The 2022 edition of the festival has been slated for May 4-7.

MG/AG