ONCE UPON A TIME… A SEPARATION

Protagonists :

• Asghar FARHADI, director
• Leila HATAMI, actress, role of Simin
• Babak KARIMI, actor, role the examining magistrate
• Peyman MOADI, actor, role of Nader
• Sarina FARHADI, actress, role of Termeh
• Agnès DEVICTOR, specialist in Iranian cinéma
• Ali-Asghar SHAHBAZI, actor, role of Nader’s father

Portrait of a film: A Separation is the story of a divorce in contemporary Tehran. A young woman wants to emigrate with her daughter, but her husband refuses because he wants to stay close to his father, who is suffering from Alzheimer’s. Parallel to this, the nurse accuses the husband of having pushed her down the stairs during an argument. Both cases end up before the judge. A solidly framed double plot and breathtaking suspense for a deeply moving film of profound humanity.

Portrait of an Era: Shot in 2011, A Separation is a journey into contemporary Iranian society, showing the cleavage between the liberal middle classes and the religious, traditional working classes. It is also the portrait of a rebellious woman, in a highly developed country but suffocating under the oppressive weight of religion. Since 1979, Iran has been an Islamic republic led by very conservative religious leaders, which was shaken in 2009 by a major protest movement, which was brutally repressed.

Portrait of a Filmmaker: Asghar Farhadi’s fifth feature film, A Separation is the most broadcasted Iranian film worldwide and the first to receive an Oscar in Hollywood. Born in 1972 in Isfahan, Asghar Farhadi began his career as a scriptwriter and playwright for Iranian television. He is part of the new generation of Iranian filmmakers, paradoxically very much in vogue despite strong official censorship.