IDFA X De Balie: And How Miserable Is the Home of Evil & Talking with Rivers + Q&A

During this screening, the short film And How Miserable Is the Home of Evil will be followed by Talking with Rivers.

And How Miserable Is the Home of Evil

The video is authentic, and perhaps the audio too, but the combination of the two is fictional—for now, at least. We see the Iranian Ayatollah Ali Khamenei taking refuge in a mosque, surrounded by his followers. Meanwhile, we hear the protests outside becoming increasingly furious and violent. This is a documentary about the near future of Iran, maker Saleh Kashefi hopes.

The Iranian filmmaker, who has now fled to Switzerland, delved into the archives of Khamenei’s website, which contain endless videos of sermons and speeches that Iran’s supreme leader has given over the years. Kashefi places the images in a new context; through his careful selection and editing, he shows Khamenei not as the strong leader he likes to present himself as, but as a desperate dictator in his vulnerable final moments.

Saleh Kashefi – 7′ – Switzerland – Farsi

Talking with Rivers

The neighboring nations of Afghanistan and Iran used to belong together: they were both parts of the historical region of Khorasan until 1747, when they separated. Talking with Rivers is a conversation between these two countries, through the voices of Iranian director Mohsen Makhmalbaf, who has made ten films in and about Afghanistan, and of Afghan actor Jawanmard Paiez.

Their dialogue explores the violent history of the two countries—all those invasions by foreign powers, all those refugees, all that repression by mullahs or the Taliban. Why is it, exactly, that they were unable to come together? “Oh brother, we were separated and you were destroyed,” they both say.

Mohsen Makhmalbaf – 50′ – Iran, United Kingdom – Farsi

Q&A

After the screening, the filmmakers will join us on stage for a short Q&A with the audience.

Altijd als eerste op de hoogte van onze programmering, De Balie podcasts, Tv fragmenten en de nodige verdieping.