23rd edition November 20th to 28th, 2026
23rd edition
20 to 28 November, 2026
Ali Asgari is a writer, director, producer, and prominent figure in Iranian cinema. Two of his short films were nominated for the Palme d’Or at the Festival de Cannes, and his debut feature-length work, Disappearance, had its premiere at the Venice International Film Festival. Until Tomorrow, his second feature, premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival. Terrestrial Verses premiered in Un Certain Regard at Cannes and had its MENA premiere at the Marrakech International Film Festival. Higher than Acidic Clouds, a boundary-pushing hybrid film, was selected for the International Documentary Festival Amsterdam as well as Marrakech. Asgari is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. His latest feature, Divine Comedy, had its premiere in Venice.
Forty-year-old Bahram has spent his entire career making films in Turkish-Azeri, None of them has been presented in Iran. His most recent work, also denied permission to be screened by the Ministry of Culture, pushes him to the edge of defiance. With his sharp-tongued, Vespa-riding producer Sadaf by his side, Bahram embarks on an underground mission to show his film to an Iranian audience, dodging government censors, absurd bureaucracy, and self-doubt.
Director Ali Asgari
Producer Milad Khosravi, Ali Asgari
Screenwriter Alireza Khatami, Bahram Ark, Bahman Ark, Ali Asgari
Cinematographer Amin Jafari
Production Designer Melika Gholami
Editor Ehsan Vaseghi
Sound Abdolreza Heydari
Music Hossein Mirzagholi
Production Companies Seven Springs Pictures, Taat Films
International Sales Company Goodfellas
Distributor Retinia