In the Name of Scheherazade oder der erste Biergarten in Teheran
In the Name of Scheherazade or the First Beer Garden in Teheran
Narges Kalhor
This film has been nominated for the Audience Award endowed with 1,000 euro. Please vote after watching the movie.
You can find an overview of all nominated films here.
A homosexual teenager from Syria, an artist with Afghan roots and an Iranian-born beer brewer »in a mixture of socially relevant narrative and the very first story from the Middle East«. Political, oriental, exotic – everything you could wish for from an Iranian filmmaker?
In a cheerfully anarchic blend of documentary, fiction and animated frame narrative about the ›world’s first storyteller‹, Narges Kalhor and her protagonists confront unfamiliar expectations and their own insecurities. Eli wants to apply for asylum but is reluctant to speak about her traumatic experiences in Syria. Sarah was born in Germany but is repeatedly asked at her exhibitions about her Afghan ›home‹. Mahnaz plans to open Teheran’s first beer garden but faces resistance from the Iranian authorities. And documentary film-maker Narges is frustrated with her tutor who urges her to make a film about her own escape story as they review film material together. Just as Sheherazade once needed storytelling as a strategy of survival, Narges and her actors today struggle to find their voice and tell their story. But how can you say anything if someone is constantly interrupting you? Seen only in terms of her cultural background, the film-maker’s scope for creativity seems small, and the risk of being consumed by anger and grief big. In the end it is the tried-and-tested weapons of comedy – humour, chaos, slapstick – that help Narges and her film break through rigid structures and demonstrate resistance in the form of collective laughter. Three cheers for storytelling in difficult times!
As part of the »ifs Begegnung« Gender & Diversity and of Internationales Frauen* Filmfest Dortmund+Köln 2021 on June 16th at 7.30 p.m. an Online-Talk with director Narges Kalhor will take place. As part of the coollaboration In the Name of Scheherazade or the First Beer Garden in Teheran will be available on our video-on-demand platform from June 9th – free of charge!
In collaboration with ifs internationale filmschule köln.
Narges Kalhor
Born in Teheran in 1984, Narges Kalhor studied at the city’s University of Film and TV. While presenting her regime-critical short film Die Egge at Nuremberg International Human Rights Film Festival in 2009, she was forced to apply for political asylum in in Germany. Between 2010 and 2019, she studied film directing at the Documentary and Television Journalism department of Munich University of Television and Film. In the Name of Scheherazade or the First Beer Garden in Teheran is her graduation film.
Films by Narges Kalhor (Selection)
Gis 2016 | Lavashak 2014 | Kafan 2014 | SHOOT ME! 2013 | München-Teheran 2011 | Die Egge 2008