Kiarostami classic opens Fajr International Film Festival in Shiraz
Fajr International Film Festival opens in the southern city of Shiraz on 26 November with a newly restored print of Abbas Kiarostami’s 1994 drama ‘Through the Olive Trees’.
Festival officials said they programmed several restored Iranian titles this year but chose ‘Through the Olive Trees’ to launch the 43rd edition, calling the film a “seminal” work in Kiarostami’s career.
The picture, which earned the Silver Hugo in Chicago, was written, produced and directed by the late auteur, whose restrained visual grammar shaped a generation of Iranian filmmakers.
The story follows Hossein, a young man in the quake-stricken village of Koker, as he tries to woo Tahereh after surviving a devastating tremor that levels the community. The narrative circles around loss, persistence and what Kiarostami once described as “the quiet labor of hope”.
Iranian jury lineup announced
The festival named its Iranian jurors on Tuesday, before curtains rise on the 43rd edition in Shiraz.
Organizers tapped five Iranian filmmakers to serve across the main strands, International Competition, Eastern Vista, New Perspective, and Broken Olive Branch, alongside foreign jurors to be announced later.
Veteran cinematographer Mahmoud Kalari joins composer Christophe Rezai on the International Competition jury, pairing Kalari’s decades of visual craft with Rezai’s score-driven sensibility.
Actor Hoda Zeinolabedin takes the Eastern Vista slot, which typically showcases films from Asia and the broader East.
Writer-director Mehdi Karampour judges the New Perspective section, which screens first and second features.
Director Farzad Mo’tamen takes the helm of the Broken Olive Branch jury, a segment often devoted to works probing conflict and reconciliation.
The festival, run by secretary Rouhollah Hosseini, runs from November 26 to December 3 across venues in Shiraz.