Iran’s ‘Sun Children’ to vie at Shanghai filmfest

The Shanghai International Film Festival (SIFF) in China has been set to host award-winning Iranian movie ‘Sun Children’.

Directed by Majid Majidi, the film will be among the competition titles at the International Panorama section of the 24th edition of the Chinese fest.

‘Sun Children’ tells the story of four child laborers who are led by Ali, a driven and voracious young boy. Ali masterminds petty crimes to commit with his friends besides working worthless jobs to survive.

Everything begins with Ali being taken on by a criminal head to find an underground treasure that is laid underneath a school that gives second chances to youth like the four friends.

When they enroll in the school to retrieve the treasure, something starts to change in them due to the ambiance of the place and a good-hearted school staff.

Not being professional actors, the children in the flick has actually played their experiences of street-life. However, their performances have been so brilliant that the film’s lead character, Ali portrayed by Rouhollah Zamani, gained a Marcello Mastroianni Award at the Venice International Film Festival in Italy.

The film, that has already toured many film events and grabbed several awards, has been Iran’s representative at the 2021 Oscars.

Notable on the cast list are Javad Ezzati, Ali Nassiriyan, and Tannaz Tabatabaee.

Launched in 1993, the SIFF is considered by many to be the second biggest film festival in Asia.

This year’s edition of the event is scheduled for June 11-20, 2021.

AA/MG