And Me, I'm Dancing Too | Mohammad Valizadegan
21 min
Saba is in love with the art of dancing. This is what she lives for, how she expresses herself, yet she is not free to do so in her own country. She wants to let go and be free from society's conventions, but in a state governed by religious oppression, her art becomes a risky act of rebellion.
Winner of the Crystal Bear in the Generation 14 Plus Section of the Berlin Festival, the short film And Me, I'm Dancing Too dances on the fine line between documentary and fiction, and paints a moving portrait of a new generation that aspires to free itself from a regime that is as paternalistic as it is oppressive.
Feature Debut
Endless Borders | Abbas Amini
110 min
Carmel competition
Ahmad, a skilled schoolteacher, has been sentenced to two years of internal exile far away from his native Tehran. He is now teaching in a tiny, windblown village, within sight of the heavily fortified Afghan border. When Ahmad meets a family of Hazara ethnicity, fleeing the Taliban, he becomes involved in the story of young lovers, all while trying to reconcile with his own wife.
Winner of the Big Screen Award at Rotterdam, Endless Borders captures the wide-open expanses of this hilly terrain while examining ethical dilemmas against a keenly-observed political backdrop. The result is a gripping, confident and relevant drama of our time.
Filmography: I Am Here! (2020), Slaughterhouse (2020), Hendi & Hormoz (2018), Valderama (2016).