Amsterdam doc fest to screen Iranian ‘Asho’

The 2019 edition of the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam in the Netherlands has set to screen Iranian ‘Asho’.

Directed by Jafar Najafi, the 30-minute doc will be screened at the IDFA Competition for Kids & Docs.

Produced by Maryam Naqibi, ‘Asho’ is about a shepherd boy who is obsessed with Hollywood movies and wants to become an actor.

“What could be better than singing your heart out on a hillside? Asho enjoys life in the hills of Iran, where he herds a flock of sheep with his father. The sheep are all named after famous people: presidents, actors or actresses, depending on their hairstyle. Asho knows all about the movies – he watches them on his cracked tablet out in the fields. He also wants to be an actor when he grows up. But does he have the qualities of a real star at home? His sister says that he can’t even eat politely. And first he has to get married to his cousin Pari, who also visits him in his dreams.

Asho plays to the camera like a pro, but when Pari is around he gets embarrassed and slaps her teasingly. Will they make up and be friends? The colorful clothing and sun-drenched countryside make a stunningly romantic backdrop for the ambitions of the cheerful Asho, an irresistible small-time cowboy who has long been the star of his own film,” the IDFA website wrote about the Iranian documentary.

The 2019 edition of the IDFA is slated for November 20-December 1.

MG/AG