Tarlan is an elderly teacher and union organizer who adopted Zara when she was still a child. She now runs a dance school, a business her husband deems dishonorable. One day, Zara is murdered, and Tarlan knows her husband is the killer. She saw what she shouldn't have seen, and this makes her a witness who must be silenced.
Spectators' Award in the Orizzonti Extra section at the 2024 Venice Film Festival
"Winner of the Viewers' Award in the Orizzonti Extra section at the 81st Venice Film Festival, Shahed is a story about women, written in collaboration with Jafar Panahi, who also edited it. Shahed is a profound reflection on Iranian society and the complex reality that afflicts its people, especially women. There is no shortage of attacks on the government and its way of operating and acting towards those seeking justice, even when the accuser is a woman and the accused a man. The repressive regime does not stop at the defense of human dignity, and the truth remains a practically insignificant embellishment. The last two years of struggle and demands in Iran have certainly inspired us to film this story, finding the courage and boldness to make it. (Leonardo Lardieri)
The film is part of the series I Tulipani dell'Iran, in collaboration with the associations: Donne Libere Iraniane, Donna Vita Libertà Firenze, and Mabuse Cineclub.
