Russia’s Flahertiana to host Iran doc ‘The Trucker and the Fox’

The International Documentary Film Festival Flahertiana in Russia has scheduled to host Iranian title ‘The Trucker and the Fox’.

Directed by Arash Lahouti, the 78-minute documentary will go on the screen at the 20th edition of the Russian event in December 2020.

Organizers of the Russian festival have decided to rescreen a package of the films that have received the Big Golden Nanook, the event’s grand prix for the best documentary, during the previous editions of it.

‘The Trucker and the Fox’ won the award at the 2013 edition of the Flahertiana and the poster of its 2014 edition was designed based on the main character of the Iranian documentary.

The documentary has grabbed a large number of awards at several prestigious film events around the world, including the International Documentary Human Rights Film Festival in Ukraine, the 2013 Chicago International Film Festival and the 2014 Big Sky International Film Festival in the US.

“The film is a loving portrait of the truck drivers who sit out in the parking lot to watch their colleague’s films of animal fables,” a short synopsis for the documentary reads.

‘The Trucker and the Fox’ depicts a portrait of Mahmoud Kiani-Falavarjani, a truck driver, an animal lover and an award-winning filmmaker who is best known for his short title ‘The Raven and the Fox’.

When he finds himself in a psychiatric hospital after the death of his beloved collaborator – his pet fox – he is diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

His doctor gives him strict instructions to start from scratch and stop obsessing over his loss.

Mahmoud tries his best to move on with the help of pharmaceuticals, yoga, meditation and a return to work, but he knows his cure is making movies with and about animals. So, he begins pre-production on a new film.

Mahmoud’s motivation to promote a better understanding and appreciation of animals is tested once casting starts and the line between kindness and cruelty becomes blurred.

The 20th International Documentary Film Festival Flahertiana will take place in Perm on December 11-17, 2020.

MG/AG