The 9th Ruyesh (literally: growth) Film Festival will be held in Tehran from February 24 to 28 by the Islamic Development Organization’s artistic branch, ‘Hozeh Honary’ (Art Center).
Short religious films in the form of fiction, documentary and animation will be screened, the festival secretariat said in a press release.
The event seeks to introduce the potentials of religious cinema in Iran and to help the filmmakers whose works foster religious teachings, ethics, hope and virtues. The festival will also generate motivation and bring hope to young filmmakers “who are harbingers of a prosperous future for Iranian professional cinema.”
The festival includes categories of National Cinema which will screen movies produced by Iranian filmmakers; Seminars, dedicated to speeches and lectures about Iranian short and long films that either have raised religious and Qur’anic points or have been based on religious and Qur’anic teachings during the past three decades; New Viewpoint for professional meetings on the approaches to the relationship between religion and cinema, attended by filmmakers, experts and scholars; and Special Shows (international) to screen foreign religious short films during the first decade of the 21st century and honor filmmakers who have raised religious or faith-related points in their works.
Close to 130 films from 34 countries were submitted to the festival secretariat this year, among them 14 movies from 8 countries were approved to be screened during the 4-day cinematic event. Four films from Spain, two from France, Belgium and Hong Kong each, and one from Canada, Italy, Colombia and Portugal each form the final line-up of the international section.
The movies will be screened at Azadi cinema in Tehran on February 24, 25, and 26 and the closing ceremony is set to run on Feb. 28 at the venue of Andisheh Hall at the Art Center.
