TEHRAN -- Filmmaker Farzad Motamen says his movie “The Voices” tries to demonstrate that in Iran’s cinema, one can still produce an interesting film for viewers with minimal facilities.

In a session held after the film’s screening at the Felestin Cinema on Wednesday, he added, “Producing these kinds of movies mostly depends on support from the press. If they do not back up these movies, the films will face many difficulties.
He further expressed his appreciation to the film producers and said, “If they did not take the risk to invest in this movie, I would be forced to make something else, like all these years where I couldn’t make any movies following my making “White Nights.”
“I have no cinema of my own and I am only a servant of the film industry. The distinctiveness of my movies are due to the superiority of their screenplays, and the best film scripts have always been written by Saeid Aqiqi,” he remarked.
Screenwriter Aqiqi, also present at the session, went on to say, “It is a great pleasure when a distinctive movie is added to Iran’s cinema, whether I had a role in it or not.”
The importance of the movie “The Voices” is not in its complicated theme, but in the respect it bestows upon the audience, he noted.
Actor Reza Kianian spoke briefly and said that he watched the film for the first time at the cinema and that he liked the movie, “I expressed my congratulations to the director.”
Film producer Manijeh Hekmat also thanked the press for their full support of independent movies and stated, “You all know our views and our taste in cinema. Although cinema has been subject to different procedures all these years because of changes in policy, we all still try to present films that retain a characteristic mark of Iran’s unique cinema.”
She also criticized Farabi Cinematic Foundation and said, “Six months ago, when we began shooting the movie, Farabi did not fulfill its promises and left the producers on their own, but fortunately we somehow managed to accomplish the task anyway.”
Actress Roya Nonahali in a short talk said that it is a great opportunity for an actor to play in different roles and that she is happy to have had such a chance.
In “The Voices,” the story is told in reverse. The film begins with its most impressive scene, the murder, and then it continues backward to narrate the story.
Atila Pesyani, Pegah Ahangarani, Nazanin Farahani and Mikail Shahrestani are among the other cast members. The film is an entry to Iran’s cinema section of the 27th Fajr Film Festival underway in Tehran.
Photo: Director Farzad Motamen attends a review session for “The Voices” on February 4, 2009 after its screening in the 27th Fajr International Film Festival. (Mehr/Majid Asgaripur)