Iranian Animations Join Annecy Festival Lineup

The 58th Annecy International Animation Festival, slated for June 11-16, has selected four Iranian animated films for different sections.
Three short films are to participate in the main competition section while the highly praised feature animated movie “The Last Fiction” is to be screened out of the competition section, ISNA reported.
“Last Fiction”, written and directed by Ashkan Rahgozar, is based on the classic tale of Zahak from “Shahnameh” (Grand Book) by the Persian poet Ferdowsi (935-1020).
The movie’s production process lasted eight years, during which it was introduced as one of the top six ongoing animation projects in the world by Annecy Festival in 2013 and one of the top four animations under production at the Cannes Film Market in 2016.   
It is voiced over by prominent Iranian actors, including Parviz Parastouei, Akbar Zanjanpour, Bita Farahi, Hassan Pourshirazi, Ashkan Khatibi, Hamed Behdad, Shaqayeq Farahani, Melika Sharifinia, Farrokh Nemati, Baran Kosari and Majid Mozaffari.
The film follows Zahak’s treacherous rise to the throne in Jamkard in Persia and the young hero Afaridoun’s fight to save the kingdom and its people from darkness.