TEHRAN- Iranian short film “Grandpa’s Lullaby” has won the Best Screenplay award at the 2026 International Photography and Short Movie Festival (IPSMF) in Indonesia.

Written and directed by Bahman Rezai, the fantasy and live-action animation film is a production of the Soureh Young Film Center. It received the award in the short film competition section of the festival, whose main event and awards ceremony took place on November 12 at Telkom University in Bandung, Indonesia, Mehr reported on Sunday. 

“Grandpa’s Lullaby” tells the story of one of the children martyred in Minab, using a child-centered narrative to explore the boundaries between memory, imagination and reality.

According to the film's synopsis, on a rainy night, the telling of a children's story takes a grandfather and his grandchild on a journey between fantasy, memory and reality.

Actors Reza Fayyazi and Ali Salimi star in the production.

On February 28, the Shajareh Tayyebeh elementary school in Minab, Hormozgan province, was struck during US-Israeli attacks on Iran, killing 168 people, including children aged 7 to 12, and injuring at least 95 others. 

Investigations by Al Jazeera, The New York Times, BBC Verify, CBC and NPR, drawing on satellite imagery, video footage and witness accounts, identified the school as a distinct civilian facility and concluded that the United States was responsible for the strike. Evidence also indicated that the site was hit three times, raising serious questions about the targeting decisions and the use of intelligence in the attack, while intensifying calls for international accountability.

The IPSMF is an annual international event organized by the Faculty of Communication and Social Sciences at Telkom University. It brings together filmmakers and photographers from different countries, providing a platform for short films and photography that explore social realities and encourage creative expression.

The 2026 edition was held under the theme “Framing Social Change,” highlighting the role of visual storytelling in raising awareness and encouraging reflection on social issues.

SAB/