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The participants in a role-playing game embark on a fictional train journey to the mysterious island of Hermia. Throughout the journey, everyone must remain strictly in character. But little by little, personal conflicts, repressed memories and hidden truths begin to intrude on the game. The apparent freedom of the journey increasingly transforms into a form…

Whilst the Strait of Hormuz usually appears in the international news as a zone of military conflict and a strategic bottleneck, southern Iran is far more than that: an independent cultural region, shaped by African, Indian and Arab influences, with its own music, language and storytelling tradition.

In recent years, Iranian cinema has increasingly turned its attention to the southern region around the Strait of Hormuz, an area rarely depicted on screen. To mark a special occasion, “Visions of Iran” presents Abbas Amini’s poignant teenage drama “Hendi and Hormoz”, which was screened in the Berlinale’s Generation 14plus section in 2018.

Eighteen-year-old Roo-bekheir refuses to marry – a sign of demonic possession for her family and the village. In “The Sealed Soil”, Marva Nabili explores female self-determination, social pressure and the limits of individual freedom in 1970s Iran.

The short film is often more immediate, experimental and less constrained than the feature film. In Iran, this format offers filmmakers the opportunity to process social tensions, personal experiences and political moods quickly and directly through art. Curator Ghasideh Golmakani presents a selection of recent short films again this year – a cinematic retrospective of…

Ziba is preparing for her daughter’s wedding when she is suddenly kidnapped by a feared gang. She has barely any time to escape – for her daughter is already on her way.

At just 16 years old, Soraya creates striking drawings and sculptures – poetic, powerful and yet marked by a profound darkness. For her, art is far more than a form of expression: it is a survival strategy, a source of hope and a means of self-assertion.

Amir is about to emigrate to Italy, where he hopes to start a new life with his partner Tara. Whilst waiting for his visa, he cycles through the streets of Tehran – a personal farewell journey through his hometown and to the people he might be leaving behind.

Raman is about to leave Tehran to study abroad. His friends are planning a farewell party – but what is taken for granted elsewhere is forbidden in Iran. The gathering is therefore being organised in strict secrecy. At the same time, personal conflicts and insecurities are coming to the surface within the group.

Roya, a teacher, is being held in Tehran’s Evin Prison because of her political beliefs. There, she is faced with an inhuman choice: either she makes a forced confession on television, or she remains locked up in her tiny solitary confinement cell. When she is granted a short-term leave of absence following a death in…

In this play, there are no rehearsals and no director. The actor has absolutely no prior knowledge of the text. He steps onto the stage, is handed a sealed envelope containing the script, and discovers the play without any preparation at exactly the same moment as you. What begins as a tongue-in-cheek game quickly becomes…

Als Mohey aus dem Waisenhaus geholt und von ihrer Zwillingsschwester getrennt wird, beginnt für sie ein Leben im kriminellen Milieu von Geldwäsche und Schattenwirtschaft.