Fajr filmfest announces nominees

The nominees for the 38th edition of the Fajr Film Festival in Iran have been announced.

Nominees in some of the main categories for the running edition of the Iranian national competition are as follows:

Best Film:

• ‘Atabai’ produced by Niki Karimi
• ‘The Sun’ coproduced by Amir Banan and Majid Majidi
• ‘Walnut Tree’ produced by Seyyed-Mostafa Ahmadi
• ‘Zero Day’ produced by Saeed Malekan
• ‘Butterfly Stroke’ produced by Rasoul Sadr-Ameli

Best director:

• Niki Karimi for ‘Atabai’
• Morteza Farshbaf for ‘Toman’
• Majid Majidi for ‘The Sun’
• Mohammad-Hossein Mahdavian for ‘Walnut Tree’
• Saeed Malekan for ‘Zero Day’
• Mohammad Kart for ‘Butterfly Stroke’

Best Screenplay:

• Nima Javidi and Majid Majidi for ‘The Sun’
• Saeed Malekan and Bahram Tavakkoli for ‘Zero Day’
• Mohammad Kart and Doumari brothers for ‘Butterfly Stroke’
• Behtash Sanaeeha, Maryam Moqaddam and Mehrdad Kouroshnia for ‘A Ballade for the White Cow’
• Ali Zarnegar for ‘Bone Marrow’
• Behnam Behzadi and Sahar Sakhaee for ‘I’m Scared’

Best Actor in a Supporting Role:

• Javad Ezzati for ‘Atabai’
• Arshia Nikbin for ‘The Rain Falls Where it Will’
• Mojtaba Pirzadeh for ‘Toman’
• Babak Karimi for ‘Cinema Shahr-e Qeseh’
• Amir Aqaee for ‘Butterfly Stroke’
• Navid Pourfaraj for ‘Bone Marrow’

Best Actress in a Supporting Role:

• Leila Zare for ‘It Became Blood’
• Minou Sharifipour for ‘Walnut Tree’
• Samira Hassanpour for ‘Puff Puff Pass’
• Tannaz Tabatabaee for ‘Butterfly Stroke’
• Baran Kosari for ‘Popular’
• Setareh Pesyani for ‘I’m Scared’

Best Actor in a Leading Role:

• Mir-Saeed Molawian for ‘Toman’
• Faramarz Qaribian for ‘Exodus’
• Peyman Maadi for ‘Walnut Tree’
• Amir Jadidi for ‘Zero Day’
• Ali Shademan for ‘Dying in Holy Water’

Best Actress in a Leading Role:

• Nazanin Ahmadi for ‘The Rain Falls Where it Will’
• Parinaz Izadyar for ‘Puff Puff Pass’
• Maryam Moqaddam for ‘A Ballade for the White Cow’
• Neda Jabraeeli for ‘Dying in Holy Water’
• Elnaz Shakerdoust for ‘I’m Scared’

Candidates for ‘New Look’ section:

• ‘Silence, the Cochlea’ directed by Behrang Dezfouli
• ‘Skin’ co-directed by Bahman and Bahram Ark
• ‘Zero Day’ directed by Saeed Malekan
• ‘Butterfly Stroke’ directed by Mohammad Kart
• ‘The Undercover’ directed by Amir-Abbas Rabiee

Established in 1982, the Fajr Film Festival is an event that celebrates cultural exchange, displays creative achievements of highly acclaimed cineastes and pays tribute to local and international films.

Since its establishment, the Fajr Film Festival has played a vital role in the development of the Iranian Cinema.

Supervised by Iran’s Ministry of Culture, the festival hosts veteran directors and new filmmakers from Iran and across the world every year.

The closing ceremony for the 38th Fajr Film Festival which kicked off February 1 is set to be held on February 11 in Tehran.

AA/MG