Iranian animation to hit silver screens for Muharram

Iranian animation ‘Sword and Sorrow’ (AKA The Boy and the Sword) has been set to hit domestic silver screens as the mourning month of Muharram begins.

After several successful appearances at a number of international festivals, the animated feature film, produced by Mehdi Jafari and codirected by Emad Rahmani and Mehrdad Mehrabi, will be released in Iran on June 17.

The animation has earlier become available to audiences worldwide through Apple TV and Amazon Prime Video.

‘Sword and Sorrow’ has been made with a heroic, emotional, and profound story about sacrifice, identity, and hope, along with a distinctive visual design and advanced animation techniques.

It was created with a focus on promoting Ashura culture and aims to present the most influential event in Islamic history from an Iranian perspective.

‘Sword and Sorrow’ takes viewers on a journey through the history of Islam, with a particular focus on the event of Karbala.

The 92-minute film unfolds the historical period from the martyrdom of Imam Hassan (AS) to the arrival of Imam Hussein (AS) in Karbala, narrated through the perspective of an Iranian residing in Madain.

More than a thousand years ago, in one of the famous cities of Mesopotamia, Madain, when the cruelty of the sultan was at its peak, upholding justice was throwing one’s life into death’s jaws.

Karen is a seven-year-old boy, with his most significant possession being a birthday gift, a wooden sword bestowed on him by his father. But on his very same birthday, things take a tragic twist; the sultan puts all who disobeyed him and their families to the sword.

Karen survives thanks to his uncle. They escape the city, and his uncle entrusts him to the loving Brochim family in a small village named Mahuza. Although Mahuza is always full of love and Karen receives plenty, no second passes without him mourning for his family and dreaming of finishing what his father started.

After twenty years, Karen sees an opportunity to make his father’s wish come true finally in Madain, but he’s also aware of what it will cost.

The hyperreal and realistic atmosphere in ‘Sword and Sorrow’ is achieved through the meticulous scanning of humans, capturing facial expressions, quality, and designing clothing.

Watch 'Sword and Sorrow' trailer