Animation on Persian folklore wins in AU

Australian short animation ‘Sohrab and Rustum’ was awarded at the 67th annual Sydney Film Festival in Australia.

Directed by Lee Whitmore, the animation on mythic ancient Persian warriors was given the festival’s Yoram Gross Animation Award.

The story of Rostam and Sohrab is part of the ‘Book of Kings’, a 10th century epic written by Iranian poet Ferdowsi.

The folklore narrates the tragedy of Rostam and Sohrab, a father and son who face each other in battle, not knowing about their relationship until it’s too late.

Lee Whitmore’s watercolor animation is a retelling of the myth based on Matthew Arnold’s poem of the same name.

When a young English teacher reads the poem to a group of her students, who happen to be a group of naïve teenage girls mainly concerned with nail polish and pop music, the students are taken on a journey to ancient Persia and the legendary battle scene between Rostam and Sohrab.

Confronted with the tragic death of Rostam’s younger son, Sohrab, the girls return back to class perplexed but wiser.

Founded in 1954, the Sydney Film Festival is an annual event which screens over 200 films, of which 12 are selected for the festival’s official competition.

The festival's 67th annual event wrapped up on June 16th, 2019, but continued to play a selection of the festival’s popular films for four days, leaving voting for the festival’s audience awards open until the 19th.

MB/AG