TEHRAN – Iranian documentaries will participate in the 22nd Big Sky Documentary Film Festival, which will be held in Montana, USA from February 14th to 23rd.
“The Granny & Fishes,” directed and produced by Maria Mavati and Ehsan Farooqi Fard, is the Iranian film to be screened at the festival, IRNA reports.
The 28-minute film, which will be produced in 2024, will have its international premiere at the event. Last October, it won the Golden Leaf for Best Documentary at the 41st Tehran International Short Film Festival (TISFF).
This documentary follows an elderly woman who has been living alone for years after Hamun Lagoon dried up. Every day, Grandma collects dry fish from the lagoon while 300 nearby evacuation villages are hit by sandstorms.
“Grandma and the Fish” is a production of the Documentary, Experimental and Animated Film Center (DEFC).
The Big Sky Documentary Film Festival is the premier venue for nonfiction films in the American West. It provides an ideal environment for filmmakers to premiere their new work and build lasting relationships with fellow filmmakers and the industry. Celebrating its 22nd anniversary in 2025, the festival draws 20,000 spectators and film entries from around the world to a uniquely friendly mountain town with a hometown feel in Montana.
The festival features more than 200 artists, an average of 150 nonfiction films, and a variety of exciting events throughout downtown Missoula, Montana. In addition to screenings, Big Sky will host DocShop, a five-day industry event including panels, master classes, workshops, and Big Sky Pitch Sessions.
Big Sky also screens the film in schools across Montana, reaching more than 4,000 students in just four days. Participating filmmakers will have a unique opportunity to visit classrooms, present their films, and engage students in discussions.
The Big Sky Documentary Film Festival is the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ qualifying event for short documentaries. The winners of the Best Mini-Documentary and Best Short Documentary categories will automatically qualify for next year’s Short Documentary Oscar.
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