Romania’s SIMFEST awards Iranian ‘Beloved’

The 17th International Festival of TV Broadcasters and Independent Producers - SIMFEST in Romania has awarded acclaimed Iranian documentary ‘Beloved’.

Directed by Yasser Talebi, the doc won the grand prize of the Romanian event.

‘Beloved’ is about the difficult but favorable life of an 83-year-old mother named Firouzeh who runs a unique life in the Alborz Mountains in the northern part of Iran.

Firouzeh hikes across the rugged landscape carrying bundles of wood. When she was a young girl, a marriage was arranged for her with an older man, with whom she had 11 children.

Now, none of her children come to visit her and her attempts to get closer to them remain futile.

‘Beloved’ received the best feature documentary award and a diploma at the Kazan International Muslim Film Festival in Russia's Republic of Tatarstan, a special mention at the Shanghai TV Festival in China, nomination at the Pärnu International Documentary and Anthropology Film Festival in Estonia, Special Prize at the Kranjska Gora International Film Festival in Slovenia, and NETPAC Award at the Ulju Mountain Film Festival in South Korea

It has also taken the first place among the top five mid-length films selected by the Canadian audience at the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival in Toronto.

Moreover, the doc won the Best Documentary award at the Dhaka International Film Festival in Bangladesh and the grand prix at the Autrans international Mountain film festival in France.

The SIMFEST is a TV festival – competition and the only one of this kind in Romania and among a few in Europe.  It is a complex manifestation for electronic mass media and the annual meeting point of TV specialists across the globe, as well as students, independent producers and media enthusiasts.

The 2020 edition of the SIMFEST was held on September 14-20.

Read more:

Swiss fest to showcase Iranian ‘Beloved’

‘Epilogue’ presenting Iran at SIMFEST

MG/AG