'White Winged Horse' to appear at Turkish fest

Iranian short flick 'White Winged Horse' is to make a new international appearance at the 2020 Izmir International Short Film Festival in Turkey.

Mahyar Mandegar’s ‘White Winged Horse’ will be in the running at the 21st edition of the Izmir filmfest, set for November 2-8, 2020.

'White Winged Horse' is about a man returning to his Iranian hometown, which was destroyed in the war 20 years ago. He is searching for his childhood sweetheart who had promised him eternal love – if he were to return as a white-winged horse. Past and present overlap in the poetic memory and imagination of the boy he once was.

The flick is the winner of a special mention at the Generation section (14plus) of the 70th Berlin International Film Festival in Germany.

The jury panel of the Berlinale praised the short film, writing, “This film uses the audience’s imagination to build an exceptional world, following an unlikely protagonist who nonetheless inspires strong emotion.”

“When fantasy eventually re-connects with reality, we can feel as if we are flying away with the white winged horse,” the jury of the German fest added.

On September 2020, the flick also went on screen at the Oscar-qualifying Tirana Film Festival (TIFF) in Albania.  

As one of the most important short film festivals in Turkey, the Izmir International Short Film Festival has both international and national competition categories; and the winners are awarded with Golden Cat awards.

MM/MM