Iran-Afghan film poised to hit cinemas

On the heels of finishing technical stage, Iranian film 'Canopy' starring Afghan actors is all set to be featured in the country's movie theaters.

‘Canopy’ directed by Parham Kaviani features two Afghan actors Amir-Hossein Alami and Marziyeh Mousavi, besides Iranian cast.

The romantic-themed flick follows the story of two Afghan migrants entering Iran with no permit. Upon their arrival, they have an accident which led to losing their memories.

Enayat Bakhsi, Mojtaba Ranjbar, Farzad Amirzadeh, Mehdi Solouki are other Iranian actors cast for the movie.

Making such film marks continuation of a new filmmaking trend of in Iran cinema in which Afghan migrants become the focal point of the storyline.

A case in point is Iranian-Afghan film ‘Parting’ directed by Navid Mahmoudi. The film chronicles the story of two young Afghans in love, Fereshteh and Nabi. Fereshteh has to follow her parents and leave Afghanistan to seek refuge in Iran.

Nabi decides to illegally cross the border, find Fereshteh and take her through Turkey towards Europe and a better life.

In 2017, the film was chosen as Afghanistan's submission in the foreign-language film Oscar category. It screened at the Busan International Film Festival in South Korea in 2016.

MMF/AG