Italian fest to host Iranian ‘Contagion’

The 69th edition of the Trento Film Festival in Italy has been scheduled to play host to Iranian documentary ‘Contagion’ (Chamon).

Directed by Arman Qolipour-Dashtaki, the documentary narrates the story of Iran’s Bakhtiari Tribe, the largest group of Iranian migratory nomads, who in spring every year moves en masse to a summer county where there are water and plants for their livestock.

But this year, the tribe is forced to stay in the winter county or pick the hard way since the roads that the Bakhtiari must travel to migrate are closed down due to the pandemic.

Born in 1990, Qolipour-Dashtaki is an Iranian filmmaker. He has directed more than 10 documentaries, mainly focused on local and native issues in the Zagros Mountains of Iran.

His other documentary ‘Khoniyar's Children’ will also go on screen at the Trento event.

The Trento Film Festival has represented the point of reference on these subjects for almost 70 years, over time transforming itself into a genuine testing ground for visions and ideas on the highest lands on earth, embracing an ever-increasing range of interests, including environmental and cultural issues and current affairs, making the festival environment and program even more varied and stimulating.

The festival will host films from around the world and provides a platform for the filmmakers to show their works in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 2021 edition of the event will be held online on April 30-May 9.

MG/AG