Film Critics, Directors Debate Social Maladies

Khaneh Mehr Reza, a charity in Tehran, has launched a program dedicated to screening a series of documentaries, mainly on social ills, with the objective of alleviating social maladies and raising public awareness.

The screenings are followed by debate and discussions among experts, critics and film directors.

According to Cinemapress.ir, for its second run, the charity has picked “Advantage,” a film on homelessness directed and produced by documentarian Mohammad Kart.  

Film critic and documentarian Hadi Afarideh will accompany Kart in the discussion on August 28.

The term advantage in football refers to a rule, defining a situation when a player commits a foul on a player from the opposite team, but the referee refuses to stop the flow of the game or call for a free kick.

The 70-minute documentary is about a number of homeless people who have taken shelter in a rehabilitation center to kick the habit. They have formed a football team and try to register it among other clubs in Tehran.

  Pretty Precarious

But registry has one condition: They have to first defeat the popular team Esteqlal that was once the Asian champion. Their situation becomes all the more precarious when Tehran Municipality decides to shut down the rehab center.

Regarding his documentary, Kart has given the following statement: “The film is about homeless drug addicts who despite frustration and helplessness, try to leave their past behind. However, the society is ruthless against them.”

Advantage has won several national awards, including those for best director, best soundtrack, and best editing at the 10th edition of Cinema Verite International Film Festival.

Kart started his career as a professional actor in theater in 2000 and has won several prizes. He has performed in several drama films including ‘I’m Not Angry’ directed by Reza Dormishian.

His first documentary “Bruise” received the Best Social Documentary of the Year Prize at Cinema Verite in 2013 and his second documentary “Incubus, the Small Chance” won the best direction at Fajr International Film Festival. Khaneh Mehr Reza is located at No. 1, at the corner of Niloofar Alley, between Day Hospital and Hemmat Bridge on Valiasr Street. Attendance is free.