Two Documentaries in Paris Festival

Two Iranian documentaries are present in the international competition section of the 35th Jean Rouch International Film Festival in Paris.

‘The People of the Wind’ directed by Abtin Sarabi and ‘Starless Dreams’ by Mehrdad Oskouei are the documentaries from Iran which are competing with 24 other works from Cuba, Pakistan, France, Belgium, Germany and the US among others, ISNA reported.

From world productions in the past two years, the selected films reflect the innovation of film scripts and originality of the social-cultural themes. The jury will award seven documentaries.

Sarabi’s one-hour film will have two showings on November 10. It is about an ancient ritual called ‘Zar’ in Hormuzgan Province, on the coast of the Persian Gulf in southern Iran, which is still practiced today.

The musical ceremony is used for healing the ‘victims of the wind.’ According to the natives’ belief, there exists a maleficent force driven by the winds, able to penetrate fragile bodies.

Sarabi, 32, lives and works in Lille, France as well as in Tehran. After graduating from the Tehran University of Art, he studied at the Toulouse School of Fine Arts. His first films are influenced by the late Iranian auteur Abbas Kiarostami and the Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky.

Oskouei’s award-winning work, 75 minutes long, was screened twice on November 5. The film follows a group of under 18 girls at a juvenile detention facility on the outskirts of Tehran. It shows what brought them there--a variety of reasons ranging from drug dealing and trafficking to pick-pocketing and manslaughter.

Born in Tehran, Oskouei, 47, is a film director, producer, photographer and researcher, graduated in directing from the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Tehran. His films have been shown at festivals worldwide and received several awards.

Since 1982, the Museum of Man in Paris has held the festival which in particular shows ethnographic documentaries. The event named after the French ethnologist filmmaker Jean Rouch (1917-2004), provides an opportunity for filmmakers, researchers, producers, anthropological festival programmers from around the world and the public to meet, discuss and exchange ideas on the related themes.

The festival will conclude on November 11.