Mokri’s ‘Black Rabbit, White Rabbit’ throws down gauntlet in Saudi festival
The fifth Red Sea International Film Festival, taking place in the Saudi Arabian city of Jeddah from December 4 – 13, 2025, unveiled on Tuesday its main competition lineup of 16 films, which includes the newest work from Iranian filmmaker Shahram Mokri, "Black Rabbit, White Rabbit."
The film — produced as a joint effort between Tajikistan and the UAE with Negar Eskandarfar as producer — was written by Mokri and Nasim Ahmadpour and features an international cast including Babak Karimi, Hasti Mahmayi, Kubra Dilbova, and Bijan Davlyatov.
Previously, Mokri’s film won the “Asia’s Future” award at the Busan International Film Festival and was also shown at festivals in London and Chicago. The movie is now Tajikistan’s official submission for the Best International Feature Film category at the 2026 Oscars.
The story centers on three intertwining narratives — a mysterious film device, an enigmatic audition, and a seemingly random road incident — woven together in Mokri’s signature non-linear style, blending long takes with both dark humor and elements of magical realism.
"Black Rabbit, White Rabbit" is Mokri’s fourth feature film. He is renowned for previous acclaimed works such as "Fish & Cat" (2013), which won the Special Prize in Venice’s Orizzonti section, as well as “Invasion” (2017) and “Careless Crime” (2020), the latter of which won the Chicago jury prize and was also selected for Venice.