TEHRAN -- Director Shahriar Bahrani considers his movie “The Kingdom of Solomon” a great success for Iran’s cinema.

“The Kingdom of Solomon” is an entry in the competition section of the 28th Fajr Film Festival and was screened Thursday at Tehran’s Milad Tower for the press and artists.
“The Kingdom of Solomon”, produced by the Farabi Cinematic Foundation, features the life of Prophet Solomon (AS) based on narrations from the Holy Quran.
Director Bahrani and several actors including Amin Zendegani who played the role of Solomon (AS), Mahmud Pakniyyat, Alireza Kamali and stage and costume designer Hamid Qadirian took part in a session held after the film’s screening.
Bahrani was first to speak about the movie and said, “I consider this film a big hit but we have to wait for the critics to judge. I researched the project for about a year and a half particularly focusing on the issues of magic, spells and Satan to reach a better understanding of the supernatural world.”
“Satan is observed in three stages in the movie. At the first stage his influence on people is sensed, in the second stage it is half visible and in the third stage Satan is completely out in the open for people to see,” he explained.
Producer Mojtaba Faravardeh next talked about special effects in the movie and said, “Most of the special effects were done in the country by Iranian technicians under the supervision of Leo Lu.
“The budget spent on the project is 50 billion Rials (about $50m). I believe ‘Kingdom of Solomon’ is the first time a digital film made with the latest modern technology has been experienced in the country. Today, cinema around the world has modernized completely and gone digital, so our cinema has no way to reach out to the world,” he highlighted.
Actor Pakniyyat also spoke briefly, expressing hope that the audience enjoyed watching the movie which was several years in the making. “The project showed that we have nothing less than other modern countries, we only need support to prove ourselves,” he said.
Designer Qadirian also remarked that there has been a marked improvement in the field of special effects in the country and if technicians try harder, they can soon attain the standards prevailing in the rest of the world.
Photo: A scene from “The Kingdom of Solomon”