cinema cinemaMohammad Haqit;
It is one of the oldest Edinburgh film festivals in Scotland, whose 77th edition will be held from August 15 to 21, 2024, with 10 films in the competition section. The latest work of Abdul Reza Kahani called “A shrine” from Canada has been accepted in this film event.
This well-known director, who became famous in Iran especially with the films “Twenty”, “Nothing”, “The horse is a noble animal”, and “Spontaneous and aimless” and was featured in foreign festivals and also won awards.
He has been working abroad for more than ten years. First in France; He made “Now We Have Time” in 2013 and has directed various films so far. All the films he made abroad were about Iranians and their issues, including “Azad Meshl Hawa” starring Reza Attaran in Canada, which had a very good initial script, but during the production it turned into another work. His latest film, Yek Ziarataghah, is undoubtedly his best film abroad. This work can be considered thoughtful and personal compared to his other works, which has a coherent structure in terms of mise-en-scène and scenario, and perhaps because he personally did all the work of the film, including filming, montage, etc., he had more scope for what he wanted to create. is
Mohammad Haqit: First of all, congratulations for accepting the film at the Edinburgh Festival. The film opens with a close-up of a car being washed and cleaned in a workshop by a middle-aged man named Nima in Canada. This unconscious cleaning symbolizes the condition of the first character of the film, and immediately after we see him cleaning his hands with difficulty, which is caused by a skin problem, it seems that he wants to rid himself of something. During the film, we find out that this problem is not only physical, but also spiritual, and the end of his work is to go to nature, where he wants to purify himself away from the society full of deceit and lies.
Abdul Reza Kahani:I am very happy that you watched the movie carefully. In order for the character of the film to be believable, I have paid attention to his behavior. Skin disease comes from his lack of relaxation. As it can be seen in places in the film when he goes to the doctor or to his girlfriend who is very fond of him, his character and his inner self are slowly revealed. We still see that it does not fit the society in which it lives. For example, his honesty bothers him. Little by little, this disproportion with his surroundings and his situation worsens. His mental state is gradually becoming strange.
Truth: Yes, you are right. Let’s go back to the subject of the film. My opinion as a critic is that apart from being an actress, Nima can combine her true inner self with a taste of the director’s spirit and the dialogues given to her, and this makes the film more fruitful and palpable. How true can this perception be?
Kahani: I can say that maybe 80 percent of movies are made in this way. I had a deep understanding of Nima’s life. From his crises, from his successes and failures. At the same time, he also understood me… this understanding was mutual. Although I say that I made my film alone, I needed someone whose intellectual and emotional atmosphere was shared with mine, so I did not see the presence of other technicians at work. This was my solitude with him. I wanted him to be with me and let me enter his privacy. I go everywhere with him. I wanted someone who understood me a lot. Sometimes he did not know that I was filming him. But in general, he knew that we were making a film. I asked him to give himself to me from morning to night and to be only involved in his role.
Truth: Where did the initial idea or spark come from?
Kahani: In such films, we get inspiration and ideas from the person himself. Of course, I had a story in the beginning that I fed to Nima. This story fits Nima’s appearance, moods, eyes, etc.
Truth: After getting tired of his previous job, Nima accidentally gets stuck in building a shrine. Was this getting involved with religion and going towards the construction of a mobile shrine in Nima itself, or did you advance the story in this way? Apart from this, the fact that the Iranians who left Iran and settled in Canada and live in a secular society with a non-religious regime, what happens when they feel like going to the shrine again and want to return to the tradition and make offerings and charity in Should they throw down that shrine? It seems a bit grotesque and absurd, isn’t it?!
Kahani: This situation really exists in Canada and many Iranians living in Canada have taken Iran there with them. They even organize Tasu’a and Ashura ceremonies.
Truth: An interesting point that caught my attention is why Nima has a mobile caravan in which he chose his home. It means that even though it has moved around, it does not have a fixed place or does not want to have one. Isn’t it a sign that immigrants and refugees are still wandering? Isn’t Nima looking for a new identity in another country? Why doesn’t he try to adapt himself in the new society that is Canada and be in touch with this community? place himself there…?
Kahani: What is related to the character of my film is that he is not calm, he does not stay in one place. He is not satisfied with himself. He is not satisfied with his community. For this reason, his mind is towards having a mobile job and based on what happens, he builds a mobile shrine. First of all, it is not intended to defraud. But a situation arises and one day he tells a lie and the story begins. There are many Iranians in Canada who still wish to touch an imamzadeh to fulfill their needs, and when they see this shrine, they pour money into it…. But later, Nima gets tormented and constantly questions herself and others, and even a little later she says to the cow, to the dog, etc.: “I just told a lie…” I just told a lie.
Truth: And Nima entrusts the construction of the shrine to the same carpenter who built it and…
Kahani: He insists on being truthful. Therefore, he cannot continue living with a girlfriend he likes. This character helps me as an idea designer. Man lies to defend himself as if it is in his nature. It helps to shape this social life. The character of my film cannot be like others, so his path will change.
Truth: As the story progresses and various people, most of whom are women, pour money into the mobile imamzadeh in various places, one of them is a lady who is dressed in red and faces Nima in the middle of the film. He considers Nima to be a fraud and starts a verbal argument with her and is not willing to pour money into the shrine. Can choosing a red dress for this woman be symbolic?
Kahani: You have watched the movie very carefully. I must say that Nima wears black throughout the film. In fact, a person is one color. I tried to consider different colors for other people. This can be attributed to the potential of people to play with the truth. For example, the carpenter who builds the imamzadeh, we understand how he slowly reaches where he is and becomes the guardian of the imamzadeh and places it in a fixed place. At first, he did not want to partner with Nima, but now they are pouring good money into it, the situation is different.
Truth: I have followed all your movies; I see that in this film, the frames are all fixed and are more thought out and calculated than your other works. Better focus can be seen in the different components of the film.
Kahani: Yes, it is true. During the previous films, I had to pay attention to all the agents who are on the stage and behind the camera, and this is cumbersome, of course, I have worked with them for many years and I respect them, but apart from this, the film production company, etc. they close The reality was that I had to spend a lot of time to express my thoughts about this and that so that the plot would go the way I wanted. At the same time, they may not be able to implement my idea 100% because they also have their own ideas and want to implement them. What I can say about my experience on this film is that I am very satisfied with it and also that I had to go through different paths and experiences in these ten years abroad. Anyway, it’s hard work. The only thing I am happy about is that I did not fall. I never got tired. I was interested to see how I could connect with a new audience. It is important to me that we believe that it is possible to make a film elsewhere. The idea that a filmmaker should only make a film in his own country to be successful is a thought that should be thrown away.
Truth: Anyway, fortunately, your efforts have paid off and in my opinion, among the works of Iranian filmmakers who started their work from within and have made films abroad for more than twenty years, “A Shrine” is a remarkable, reasonable and successful work. The film A Shrine is scheduled to be released in Canadian cities in early September.