Two European Awards for Feature Film, Animation

An Iranian feature film and a feature-length animated movie have won top awards at two European festivals.

Competing in the 15th Ischia Film Festival in Italy (June 24-Juy 1), ‘Immortality’ written and directed by Mehdi Fard Qaderi won the Best Feature Film Award, Mehr News Agency reported.

According to a jury statement, they decided to present the film with the top award “for the brave use of a single location in a single shot”. The jury note said, “beyond his mastery, we recognize that it is a well-written and recited movie whose purpose is to provide a unique fresco in modern Iran. What a success!”

It is the first feature film by Fard Qaderi, and tells the story of six families, in different compartments of a train, moving through a rainy night. In a single, 145-minute take, the film depicts the families and how their lives are intertwined.  Vacillating between fact and fiction, each story builds on the one before and leads to the next. Each destiny is influenced by the other on board, and all hurtle to the same destination.

The cast includes Manouchehr Alipour, Alireza Ostadi, Soudabeh Beyzai, Atabak Naderi, Faqiheh Soltani, Anahita Nemati, Misaq Zarei, Maral Farjad and Ali Ebadi.

Born in Nishabur, Khorasan Razavi Province, Fard Qaderi, 30, has passed film courses at the Iranian Young Cinema Society in Tehran. He started making short films in 2005. His shorts have been shown in more than 80 festivals around the world and collected over 20 awards.

  Animation Prize

The long animation ‘Release From Heaven’ written by Majid Asoodegan and directed by Ali Noori Oskouei was selected as the best animated feature film at the 2017 Summer edition of Lisbon Film Festival, a quarterly online festival based in Portugal (June 26-July 1).

Noori Oskouei’s first feature work depicts a female writer and teacher, in a war-torn country, who has to accompany two of her students on a life changing journey.

Using enchanting mixed 2D and 3D animation techniques, the project blurs the lines between imagination, storytelling and reality.

The 76-minute work has so far won ‘Animation That Matters Award’ at Animation Day of the 70th Cannes Film Festival in France in May as well as the best animated feature film at the 14th Accolade Global Film Competition in California last month.