سرزمین مادری (Motherland)
2023 · 24m · Canada
Directed by Jasmin Mozaffari
Genres: drama
Tones: melancholic, tender, tense
Set in 1979 at the height of the Iran Hostage Crisis, Babak travels to rural Iowa to meet his fiancée Katie's parents, only to confront the painful realities of being an Iranian immigrant in patriotic post-Vietnam America. Inspired by director Jasmin Mozaffari's father's real experiences.
Picked by Margot
The scouts
Iranian fiancé meets Iowa parents during the hostage crisis — the meet-the-parents-as-pressure-cooker version of a story usually told as thriller. Direct from the director's father's life, which I'll always respect over generic prestige.
Mozaffari's intimate Iran-Hostage-Crisis chamber piece sits in the Asghar Farhadi mode of moral pressure-cookers, with Arian Moayed's producing presence adding weight. Drawing from her father's actual experience grounds it.
24:07 from Mozaffari (Firecrackers) with Arian Moayed exec producing — that's a real industry vote of confidence, and grounding 1979 hostage-crisis tension in a meet-the-parents dinner rather than a thriller frame is the harder, smarter swing. The personal-source material plus full Iranian-Canadian crew gives it specificity.
Reviews
This ambitious short is a triumph in every sense of the word. Mozaffari demonstrates supreme mastery of her craft in the telling of this touching and important story.
Mozaffari handles the story with an incredible command of her craft, delivering a powerful narrative that doesn't flinch from the tough stuff, with performances that hit all the right notes.
Festivals
- Toronto International Film Festival 2023, Best Canadian Short Film
- Aspen Shortsfest 2024, Drama Jury Prize
- Canadian Screen Awards 2024, Best Live Action Short Drama
- Palm Springs International ShortFest 2024
- Hollyshorts Film Festival 2024