Short Films

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International Competition

WORLD WAR III
JANG-E JAHANI SEVOM

• Director: Houman Seyedi
• IRAN / 2022 / DCP / Colour / 107’ / Farsi; Turkish, English s.t.

• Screenplay: Houman Seyedi, Arian Vazir Daftari, Azad Jafarian
• Director of Photography: Payman Shadmanfar
• Editing: Houman Seyedi
• Music: Bamdad Afshar
• Cast: Mohsen Tanabandeh, Neda Jebreili, Mahsa Hejazi, Navid Nosrati
• Producer: Houman Seyedi
• Production Co.: Namava
• World Sales: Iranian Independents

2023 Istanbul Film Festival Golden Tulip Best Film (in memory of Şakir Eczacıbaşı)
2022 Venice Best Film–Orizzonti, Best Actor–Orizzonti
2022 Middle-East Now! (Italy) Special Mention
2022 Tokyo Special Jury Prize
2022 Asian World Film Festival (Los Angeles) Special Jury Award, Best Actor
2022 Stockholm FIPRESCI Prize
2023 Belgrad Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor

Iran’s Oscars submission World War III follows a downtrodden day labourer as he appears to be given the opportunity of lifetime when he’s cast in a bad film about the Holocaust, only to have his life turned upside down. Starting off as a black comedy and descending into the dark callousness of human oppression, World War III won two major awards at the Venice Film Festival’s Orizzonti section where it premiered. ‘People will fight tooth and nail to obtain their most basic needs –a house, a job and a family– and everything they end up obtaining is nothing but a facade –decorative and artificial,’ says prolific Iranian director, scriptwriter, editor, and actor Houman Seyedi about the inspiration of his sixth film.

This film was a Meetings on the Bridge participant.