Berlin International Film Festival 2024
Winner: Encounters Special Jury Award, Berlin International Film Festival 2024
Beitollah is a man who constantly dreams of finding a cave with gold coins in a coffer. Against the precepts of his religion, he wishes to find this treasure, and recruits a young atheist, Shoja, as his assistant. Together they embark on a quest that will take them to different parts of the Iranian landscape. The Great Yawn narrates an odyssey where the oneiric, and even the absurd, intrude on reality. A journey of external exploration that ends up revealing the tensions between two apparently opposing characters, who nevertheless find in each other a mirror to look into.
Born in Tehran, Iran in 1988, he began his career in photography, video and video installations before gradually moving towards his true passion of filmmaking. He has made more than ten music videos for independent Iranian bands which have been screened at various festivals. His first short film, In Between, won the Best Debut Film award at the 2018 Tirana International Film Festival. It was followed by America, his second short. Khamyazeye bozorg is his first feature-length film.
Heretic