US fest to screen ‘Golnesa’

Sattar Chamanigol’s debut feature ‘Golnesa’ has been scheduled to attend the 5th edition of Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival in the US.

The Iranian feature will be screened during the opening day of the festival on August 22, 2019.

‘Golnesa’ tells the story of a young Afghan couple, Golmammad and Golnesa, who are illegal immigrants in Iran.

Working in a traditional brick-making kiln in the suburbs of Tehran, they have to deal with challenges of illegal immigration as well as routine life hardships.

Chamanigol’s debut has also taken part at the 40th Durban International Film Festival in South Africa, and the 3rd R.E.D International Film Festival (RIFF) in Norway. It also won the Best Feature Film award at Global Nonviolent Film Festival in the US.

The Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival seeks out “compelling and memorable stories about underrepresented communities,” and encourages “risk taking and boundary breaking in the films” that it selects.

The festival is dedicated to showcasing the outstanding work of first and second time filmmakers, according to the event’s website.

The 2019 MNFF will roll out August 22-25, across five screens in Middlebury, Vermont, the US.

MMF/MMF