TEHRAN – The Iranian feature documentary “Isatis” directed by Alireza Dehghan opened the 4th Ethnological Film Festival in Risan, Montenegro, on August 30, and the short film “Shadow of the King” by Hadi Shariati is taking part in the event.

A production of 2021, the 75-minute film was screened in selected cinemas of Art and Experience Cinema Group in Iran last year and became the best-selling documentary film in the country, Honaronline reported.

Isatis is the first adobe city and the second historical city in the world. This documentary is also a narration about ancient and historical rituals in the heart of that city, demonstrating the material and intangible heritage in the heart of ancient culture. The peaceful coexistence of religions and the thousand-year-old city is narrated in the language of water, wind, earth, and fire.

The water story is narrated by the people who built aqueducts in Isatis, a town at the heart of the desert. The story of the wind is narrated by the people who conquered the wind to survive in a hot and dry city through windcatchers. The story of the soil is narrated by people who constructed the world's oldest adobe city. And the story of fire is told by Zoroastrian masters.

Meanwhile, industrial development and environmental pollution can endanger this city, like many historical cities in the world.

The film is a story of the kind dialogue between religions and the scent of faith. The secret to perfection and peaceful permanence can be found only in harmony with nature. 

A director, producer, and screenwriter, Alireza Dehghan, 37, holds a bachelor’s degree in drama and a master’s degree in cinema and art research. He started his career in cinema in 2002 and has so far managed to make 17 films and series, including short fiction, documentaries, and television series. Some of his works focus on the environment, anthropology, and natural beauties. “Isatis” is the combination of all. 

Dehghan is a university lecturer and has a history of membership in selection and judging boards of film festivals such as Roshd, Cinema Vérité, Youth Cinema, Industrial and Technology, and Silent Films. He is also a member of the Iranian Youth Cinema Society (IYCS).

The filmmaker has participated in 180 national and international festivals and has won 70 awards. His films have been selected for many festivals, including Fajr Film Festival, Cinema Verite, Calcutta Film Festival, Trenton Film Festival, Australian Science Film Festival, etc.

“Shadow of the King” is a 10-minute experimental, silent film, made in 2024. It shows Qajar prince Zel al-Sultan, who built a castle in the Qomeshlo hunting ground in Isfahan due to his interest in hunting animals. He inflicted a fatal blow on the environment and caused the extinction of the tiger and endangered leopard, Caspian red deer, mountain goat, and other animals.

The film has received the Best Documentary Diploma of Honor at the Tehran International Short Film Festival.

Hadi Shariati, 45, is a director and screenwriter. He received the Best Screenplay Award from the International Film Festival for Children and Youth for “Inside the Waves”.

Shariati received the Jury's Special Award from the 16th Iran International Documentary Film Festival (Cinéma Vérité) and the award for best feature documentary from the 14th Iran International FICTS Festival for the documentary film “Sattar El Classico”. 

He was also awarded the Secretary's Special Award by the 16th Cinéma Vérité Festival for the documentary film “At Oughlan”. He has won awards from the Queen Palm International Film Festival and the LAKECITY International Film Festival for his documentary film “Sarah,” which is about his daughter who is not able to see.

While preparing last year’s festival, the organizers agreed that the program of the 4th edition of the festival would be marked by the theme of “space.” The festival will conclude on September 3.

SS/