Tahmina Milani
Important films: Two women
Tahmineh Milani is the only feminist filmmaker in Iranian cinema. In a situation where the Iranian society does not talk about feminists, Milani introduced her radical feminist discourse to the cinema from the 70s with the movie “Two Women”.
Milani was born in 1339 and studied at the University of Architecture. His first work in the cinema was acting as a stage secretary for Masoud Kimiaei’s movie “The Red Line” and he also attended Masoud Kimiaei’s free workshop. He made his first feature film “Children of Divorce” in 1368, which also won the Fajr Festival award. A year later, he made the film “The Legend of Ah”, which is a social and fantasy work. The movie didn’t sell well, and for that reason, he decided to make the comedy “What’s Next?” It is the best movie of Tahmina Milani according to many people.
After Seyyed Mohammad Khatami’s government came to power and the reforms started in Milanese cinema, he started making films about the oppression of women. His first film in this regard was “Two Women” (1377) starring Niki Karimi, Maryla Zarei, Mohammad Reza Froutan and Attila Pesiani, and it made a lot of noise and was noticed by moviegoers and critics.
One of the best-selling films of Iranian cinema, the comedy “Ceasefire” is also made by Tahmineh Milani. In her films, men are recklessly attacked, and sometimes the only good man in her films is her husband, Mohammad Nikbein, who also produces her films and sometimes has short appearances in front of the camera.
It’s true that his screenplays are generally ridiculous due to the one-sided approach to judgement, and he hasn’t made a film as good as “Two Women” in years, but we have to admit that the director is capable, and especially in directing crowded mezzanines, we can notice his directorial instinct. In addition, the director has been a trend-setter in filmmaking in relation to women, and most of his films have been blockbusters at the box office, so he is considered an important director.
His last movie is “Melli ve Rahahi Negreteh Ashe” produced in 2015, which turned out to be a very bad movie.
Amir Naderi
Important movies: Sazhdhani, Dandeh
Born in 1324 in Abadan. A director who loves blood as much as the characters in his films. They tell stories about his obsession on the set of filming. He has not lived in Iran for many years. He immigrated to America in 1369 and has been living in Japan for several years now.
He is also one of the directors of the new wave of Iranian cinema. Since he was a child, he worked in cinemas and theaters and loved cinema. He started his career by photographing Masoud Kimiaei’s first film.
His first film was a bitter and dark social work called “Goodbye Rafiq” which he made in 1350. In 1352, he made the social street film “Tangna” in which Saeed Rad acted. It was also a bitter movie, and if you haven’t seen the movie itself, you must have heard Fereydoun Foroughi’s voice full of hatred when he sings: “This ankle can’t be helped anymore” whose music was composed by Monfaredzadeh for this film and Foroughi also sang on it. After the revolution of 1359, he made the film “Jestjo 1” for television, which was never shown, and in 1363, he put his masterpiece “The Runner” in front of the camera.
Amir in the movie “Runner” is very similar to Amir Naderi’s own childhood. Amiro waxes the shoes of foreigners and has big dreams in his head and is slowly going to school and learning the alphabet.
“Water, Wind, Soil” (1364) was the last film he made in Iran. His films outside Iran are independent and experimental works that are rarely seen. Of course, “Mountain” produced in 2016 was shown in Iran’s art and experience group. Naderi’s latest film is “Journey to Identity”, which he made this year. Amir Naderi is one of those directors who, with his migration, Iranian cinema lost one of its great assets.
Hamid Nematullah
Important movies: Boutique, Bepoli, Shalevar
Born in 1346, Hamid Nematullah entered the cinema with the help of Masoud Kimiaei in the films “Diafat” and “Mercedes” and made his first feature film “Boutique” in 1382. The movie “Boutique” that was screened at the festival made everyone believe that a new talent has entered Iranian cinema. A film about some young people who live in a student house and are not in a very good financial situation, and a girl played by Golshifteh Farahani who runs away from home and meets one of the boys in that house. “Boutique” showed the talent of Hamed Behdad to the audience in a single sequence, and it is perhaps the only film in which Mohammad Reza Golzar has given a good performance, which should be attributed to the direction of Hamid Nematullah.
Four years after “Boutique”, he made the social comedy “Bapoli”, which was again successful. At the end of the 80s, he filmed the TV series “White Condition” whose story was told in the 60s and during the war, which attracted the attention of Nematullah cinema lovers. In the 90s, he made the films “Araysh Ghaliz”, “Reg Khab” and “Shalevar”, which especially “Reg Khab” became the site of many controversies and had strong supporters and opponents.
Hamid Nematullah’s latest movie “Killer and Savage” starring Leila Hatami was audited because of Hatami’s shaved head and saying that her ears were visible, and they didn’t even allow it to be screened at Fajr Festival and for the press. It is not known what will happen to the film.