Never Alone received the Screen International Best Pitch Award at the 2011 edition of the Baltic Event co-production market.
Shooting has wrapped in Finland on Klaus Harö’s Second World War drama Never Alone, starring Ville Virtanen, based on the true story of how a prominent member of the Jewish community in Finland, tried to stop the police handing over Jewish refugees to the Gestapo to be deported to the death camps.
The film is produced by Ilkka Matila of Helsinki-based Mrp Matila Röhr Productions, as a €4.9m co-production with Austria’s Samsara Filmproduktion, Estonia’s Taska Film, Germany’s Penned Pictures and Sweden’s Hobab.
Shooting has wrapped in Finland on Klaus Harö’s Second World War drama Never Alone, starring Ville Virtanen, based on the true story of how a prominent member of the Jewish community in Finland, tried to stop the police handing over Jewish refugees to the Gestapo to be deported to the death camps.
The film is produced by Ilkka Matila of Helsinki-based Mrp Matila Röhr Productions, as a €4.9m co-production with Austria’s Samsara Filmproduktion, Estonia’s Taska Film, Germany’s Penned Pictures and Sweden’s Hobab.
- 11/20/2023
- by Martin Blaney
- ScreenDaily
The Italy-Slovak feature took the Screen International best pitch prize.
Sahraa Karimi’s Taliban drama Flight From Kabul has won the Screen International best pitch award from Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event, the industry platform of Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (Poff).
The project is inspired by Karimi’s own experience of the 2021 Taliban offensive that retook control of Afghanistan, and forced the filmmaker to flee her homeland. The Italy-Slovakia co-production tells the story of Zibaa, a successful Afghan filmmaker and anti-Taliban activist who has got engaged; only for her wedding plans to be destroyed when the Taliban seizes Kabul.
The...
Sahraa Karimi’s Taliban drama Flight From Kabul has won the Screen International best pitch award from Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event, the industry platform of Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (Poff).
The project is inspired by Karimi’s own experience of the 2021 Taliban offensive that retook control of Afghanistan, and forced the filmmaker to flee her homeland. The Italy-Slovakia co-production tells the story of Zibaa, a successful Afghan filmmaker and anti-Taliban activist who has got engaged; only for her wedding plans to be destroyed when the Taliban seizes Kabul.
The...
- 11/18/2023
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
The Italy-Slovak feature took the Screen International best pitch prize.
Sahraa Karimi’s Taliban drama Flight From Kabul has won the Screen International best pitch award from Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event, the industry platform of Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (Poff).
The project is inspired by Karimi’s own experience of the 2021 Taliban offensive that retook control Afghanistan, and forced the filmmaker to flee her homeland. The Italian-Slovak co-production tells the story of Zibaa, a successful Afghan filmmaker and anti-Taliban activist who has got engaged; only for her wedding plans to be destroyed when the Taliban seizes Kabul. The film...
Sahraa Karimi’s Taliban drama Flight From Kabul has won the Screen International best pitch award from Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event, the industry platform of Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (Poff).
The project is inspired by Karimi’s own experience of the 2021 Taliban offensive that retook control Afghanistan, and forced the filmmaker to flee her homeland. The Italian-Slovak co-production tells the story of Zibaa, a successful Afghan filmmaker and anti-Taliban activist who has got engaged; only for her wedding plans to be destroyed when the Taliban seizes Kabul. The film...
- 11/18/2023
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
The Italy-Slovak feature took the Screen International best pitch prize.
Sahraa Karimi’s Taliban drama Flight From Kabul has won the Screen International best pitch award from Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event, the industry platform of Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (Poff).
The project is inspired by Karimi’s own experience of the 2021 Taliban offensive that retook control Afghanistan, and forced the filmmaker to flee her homeland. The Italian-Slovak co-production tells the story of Zibaa, a successful Afghan filmmaker and anti-Taliban activist who has got engaged; only for her wedding plans to be destroyed when the Taliban seizes Kabul. The film...
Sahraa Karimi’s Taliban drama Flight From Kabul has won the Screen International best pitch award from Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event, the industry platform of Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (Poff).
The project is inspired by Karimi’s own experience of the 2021 Taliban offensive that retook control Afghanistan, and forced the filmmaker to flee her homeland. The Italian-Slovak co-production tells the story of Zibaa, a successful Afghan filmmaker and anti-Taliban activist who has got engaged; only for her wedding plans to be destroyed when the Taliban seizes Kabul. The film...
- 11/18/2023
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
The market runs November 16-17 as part of Tallinn Black Nights’ industry platform.
New projects from Afghan director Sahraa Karimi and Polish filmmaker Damian Kocur are among the 15 films to be showcased in the Baltic Event Co-Production Market which runs November 16-17.
Flight From Kabul is Karimi’s second feature after her debut Hava, Maryam, Ayesha premiered in Venice in 2019. The Slovakian co-production is based on Karimi’s own experiences of fleeing the Taliban.
Scroll down for full list of projects
Kocur presents his newest feature La Manche after winning best director at Venice Horizons last year with his debut Bread And Salt.
New projects from Afghan director Sahraa Karimi and Polish filmmaker Damian Kocur are among the 15 films to be showcased in the Baltic Event Co-Production Market which runs November 16-17.
Flight From Kabul is Karimi’s second feature after her debut Hava, Maryam, Ayesha premiered in Venice in 2019. The Slovakian co-production is based on Karimi’s own experiences of fleeing the Taliban.
Scroll down for full list of projects
Kocur presents his newest feature La Manche after winning best director at Venice Horizons last year with his debut Bread And Salt.
- 10/10/2023
- by Ellie Calnan
- ScreenDaily
Prizes also for ‘The Hypnosis’, ‘Fremont’.
Stephan Komandarev’s Bulgarian-German drama Blaga’s Lessons led the winners at the 57th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (Kviff), taking three prizes including the Crystal Globe Grand Prix.
The eighth feature from Bulgarian filmmaker Komandarev also received the best actress prize, for Eli Skorcheva; and a non-statutory Grand Prize from the ecumenical jury.
The main Grand Prix from the Crystal Globe jury consists of $25,000, to be shared equally between the director and producers, the latter of which are Komandarev and Katya Trichkova.
Scroll down for the full list of winners
Blaga’s Lessons...
Stephan Komandarev’s Bulgarian-German drama Blaga’s Lessons led the winners at the 57th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (Kviff), taking three prizes including the Crystal Globe Grand Prix.
The eighth feature from Bulgarian filmmaker Komandarev also received the best actress prize, for Eli Skorcheva; and a non-statutory Grand Prize from the ecumenical jury.
The main Grand Prix from the Crystal Globe jury consists of $25,000, to be shared equally between the director and producers, the latter of which are Komandarev and Katya Trichkova.
Scroll down for the full list of winners
Blaga’s Lessons...
- 7/8/2023
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival’s Eastern Promises industry strand has unveiled the winners of it’s project showcases, which took place at the fest from July 2-4.
This year’s edition presented 27 film projects that were screened across the festival’s three established programs: Works in Progress, Works in Development – Feature Launch, and First Cut+, competing for awards with a total value of 115,000 Eur.
In the Works in Progress sidebar, the post-production development prize went to filmmaker Klára Tasovská for her feature I Am Not Everything I Want to Be. The pic is produced by Lukáš Kokeš. The award consists of post-production services in Upp and Soundsquare.
Discussing the pic, the jury, featuring Esra Demirkiran, Festival Coordinator, Trt Sinema, Petr Tichý, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors, Barrandov Studio, Oscar Alonso, Festival Manager, Latido Films, Nadia Ben Rachid, Film Editor, and Agustina Chiarino, Producer, Bocacha Films,...
This year’s edition presented 27 film projects that were screened across the festival’s three established programs: Works in Progress, Works in Development – Feature Launch, and First Cut+, competing for awards with a total value of 115,000 Eur.
In the Works in Progress sidebar, the post-production development prize went to filmmaker Klára Tasovská for her feature I Am Not Everything I Want to Be. The pic is produced by Lukáš Kokeš. The award consists of post-production services in Upp and Soundsquare.
Discussing the pic, the jury, featuring Esra Demirkiran, Festival Coordinator, Trt Sinema, Petr Tichý, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors, Barrandov Studio, Oscar Alonso, Festival Manager, Latido Films, Nadia Ben Rachid, Film Editor, and Agustina Chiarino, Producer, Bocacha Films,...
- 7/5/2023
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
Other winners included Klára Tasovská’s documentary ’I’m Not Everything I Want To Be’
Karlovy Vary International Film Festival’s (Kviff) industry strand, Eastern Promises (July 2-5), has unveiled the 2023 winners across its three works in progress programmes: Works In Progress; Works in Development – Feature Launch; and First Cut+.
The Works in Development Award went to Sahraa Karimi’s Flight From Kabul which is based on her own personal experience of fleeing the Taliban. The Slovakian-produced drama from the Afghan director received €10,000 to aid in further development.
Assel Aushakimova’s Bikechess, about a Kazakh journalist who begins to question her ethics,...
Karlovy Vary International Film Festival’s (Kviff) industry strand, Eastern Promises (July 2-5), has unveiled the 2023 winners across its three works in progress programmes: Works In Progress; Works in Development – Feature Launch; and First Cut+.
The Works in Development Award went to Sahraa Karimi’s Flight From Kabul which is based on her own personal experience of fleeing the Taliban. The Slovakian-produced drama from the Afghan director received €10,000 to aid in further development.
Assel Aushakimova’s Bikechess, about a Kazakh journalist who begins to question her ethics,...
- 7/5/2023
- by Ellie Calnan
- ScreenDaily
‘Bikechess,’ a Dark Comedy About Journalism in Kazakhstan, Wins Karlovy Vary Works in Progress Award
Assel Aushakimova’s dark comedy about journalism in Kazakhstan “Bikechess” has won the Karlovy Vary Film Festival’s Works in Progress award, which runs as part of the festival’s industry section, Eastern Promises. The section is focused on feature film projects from Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, the former Soviet Union, the Middle East and North Africa.
The Kazakh film follows Dina, who works as a journalist for the national television station. The stories she is asked to report on are becoming increasingly absurd and full of praise for the government. Her love life is limited to a few secret meetings with her married cameraman. Dina looks after her young sister, a lesbian activist, who regularly finds herself in trouble with the authorities.
The jury said: “Pointing out through comedic eyes the absurdity to which the state can go to hide deeper issues, the jury...
The Kazakh film follows Dina, who works as a journalist for the national television station. The stories she is asked to report on are becoming increasingly absurd and full of praise for the government. Her love life is limited to a few secret meetings with her married cameraman. Dina looks after her young sister, a lesbian activist, who regularly finds herself in trouble with the authorities.
The jury said: “Pointing out through comedic eyes the absurdity to which the state can go to hide deeper issues, the jury...
- 7/5/2023
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival’s Eastern Promises industry section and film market handed out its awards Tuesday evening.
Klára Tasovská’s I’m Not Everything I Want to Be, about a female photographer on a journey towards freedom after the Soviet invasion of Prague, and Assel Aushakimova’s Bikechess, which explores government influence and journalistic ethics, won key Works in Progress honors. Sahraa Karimi’s Flight From Kabul, about a woman in Afghanistan who must decide between the love of her life and her nieces’ future when the Taliban seizes Kabul, received the Works in Development Award.
Kviff Eastern Promises describes its mission as “bridging the gap between talented filmmakers and their potential partners, festivals and audiences.” The awards are open for producers and directors from the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, the former Soviet Union, the Middle East and North Africa introducing new films...
Klára Tasovská’s I’m Not Everything I Want to Be, about a female photographer on a journey towards freedom after the Soviet invasion of Prague, and Assel Aushakimova’s Bikechess, which explores government influence and journalistic ethics, won key Works in Progress honors. Sahraa Karimi’s Flight From Kabul, about a woman in Afghanistan who must decide between the love of her life and her nieces’ future when the Taliban seizes Kabul, received the Works in Development Award.
Kviff Eastern Promises describes its mission as “bridging the gap between talented filmmakers and their potential partners, festivals and audiences.” The awards are open for producers and directors from the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, the former Soviet Union, the Middle East and North Africa introducing new films...
- 7/4/2023
- by Georg Szalai
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Projects will be presented during festival’s Industry Days section.
Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (Kviff) has unveiled the projects that will be showcased during its Eastern Promises industry strand, which takes place on July 3-4.
27 film projects have been selected for Eastern Promises’ Works in Progress, Works in Development – Feature Launch and First Cut+ Works in Progress strands.
The most promising projects, selected by international juries, will receive awards worth a total of €115,000. The showcase of projects to industry professionals will take place during this year’s Kviff Industry Days.
Eleven fiction and documentary features have been selected for the Works in Progress strand.
Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (Kviff) has unveiled the projects that will be showcased during its Eastern Promises industry strand, which takes place on July 3-4.
27 film projects have been selected for Eastern Promises’ Works in Progress, Works in Development – Feature Launch and First Cut+ Works in Progress strands.
The most promising projects, selected by international juries, will receive awards worth a total of €115,000. The showcase of projects to industry professionals will take place during this year’s Kviff Industry Days.
Eleven fiction and documentary features have been selected for the Works in Progress strand.
- 6/14/2023
- by Tim Dams
- ScreenDaily
Karlovy Vary Intl. Film Festival’s Eastern Promises industry platform has unveiled 27 film projects that will be showcased during its Works in Progress, Works in Development – Feature Launch and First Cut+ Works in Progress presentations. The most promising projects, selected by international juries, will receive awards with a total value of 115,000 Eur.
The showcasing of projects to industry professionals will take place in Karlovy Vary, during this year’s Kviff Industry Days on July 3 (Works in Progress and Works in Development – Feature Launch) and July 4 (First Cut+ Works in Progress).
For Works in Progress, 11 fiction and documentary feature films in the late stage of production or post-production from the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, the former Soviet Union, the Middle East and North Africa have been selected.
The following projects will compete for prizes of a total value of 100,000 Eur:
“Distances” (Poland)
Director: Matej Bobrik
Producer: Agnieszka Skalska...
The showcasing of projects to industry professionals will take place in Karlovy Vary, during this year’s Kviff Industry Days on July 3 (Works in Progress and Works in Development – Feature Launch) and July 4 (First Cut+ Works in Progress).
For Works in Progress, 11 fiction and documentary feature films in the late stage of production or post-production from the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, the former Soviet Union, the Middle East and North Africa have been selected.
The following projects will compete for prizes of a total value of 100,000 Eur:
“Distances” (Poland)
Director: Matej Bobrik
Producer: Agnieszka Skalska...
- 6/14/2023
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
The funding per project will rise from €150,000 to €200,000.
Funding for the next edition of Biennale College Cinema, Venice Film Festival’s emerging filmmakers’ training and production initiative, will be hiked from €150,000 to €200,000 per project.
The increase comes off the back of a three-year sponsorship deal with French media giant Vivendi that was announced in July. “Vivendi will join us as our partner,” said Venice festival artistic director Alberto Barbera. “We believe this will have a significant impact on our projects in coming years.”
Financial details of the partnership were not revealed. Biennale College Cinema is also supported by Italy’s ministry of culture,...
Funding for the next edition of Biennale College Cinema, Venice Film Festival’s emerging filmmakers’ training and production initiative, will be hiked from €150,000 to €200,000 per project.
The increase comes off the back of a three-year sponsorship deal with French media giant Vivendi that was announced in July. “Vivendi will join us as our partner,” said Venice festival artistic director Alberto Barbera. “We believe this will have a significant impact on our projects in coming years.”
Financial details of the partnership were not revealed. Biennale College Cinema is also supported by Italy’s ministry of culture,...
- 9/5/2022
- by Alina Trabattoni
- ScreenDaily
Projects selected from 15 countries.
South Korea’s Busan International Film Festival (Biff) has unveiled the 29 titles selected for the 2022 Asian Project Market (Apm).
The film financing event that runs as part of Biff’s Asian Contents and Film Market will return in-person from October 9-11, after taking place as a hybrid event last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
From this year, Apm has excluded non-Asian projects to provide more focused support for Asian projects, which must be submitted by directors who have made at least one short or full-length feature as well as producers who have been involved with at least one feature.
South Korea’s Busan International Film Festival (Biff) has unveiled the 29 titles selected for the 2022 Asian Project Market (Apm).
The film financing event that runs as part of Biff’s Asian Contents and Film Market will return in-person from October 9-11, after taking place as a hybrid event last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
From this year, Apm has excluded non-Asian projects to provide more focused support for Asian projects, which must be submitted by directors who have made at least one short or full-length feature as well as producers who have been involved with at least one feature.
- 8/12/2022
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
Busan International Film Festival (Biff) has announced the 29 projects selected for this year’s Asian Project Market (Apm), a core strand of the festival’s industry activities, including new works from Thailand’s Aditya Assarat, China’s Wang Qi, Vietnam’s Le Bao and Myanmar’s Maung Sun, whose producer Ma Aeint is currently in prison in Yangon.
Ma Aeint, who previously produced Maung Sun’s award-winning Money Has Four Legs, was recently sentenced to three years in jail with hard labor by Myanmar’s military junta, which took over the country in a brutal coup in early 2021. She was accused of “causing fear, spreading fake news or agitating against government employees”. She is attached as a producer to Maung Sun’s new project, Future Laobans, described as a drama about the “international dimension of organized crime.”
Assarat, an award-winning Thai director, is returning to feature-length directing after focusing on producing,...
Ma Aeint, who previously produced Maung Sun’s award-winning Money Has Four Legs, was recently sentenced to three years in jail with hard labor by Myanmar’s military junta, which took over the country in a brutal coup in early 2021. She was accused of “causing fear, spreading fake news or agitating against government employees”. She is attached as a producer to Maung Sun’s new project, Future Laobans, described as a drama about the “international dimension of organized crime.”
Assarat, an award-winning Thai director, is returning to feature-length directing after focusing on producing,...
- 8/11/2022
- by Liz Shackleton
- Deadline Film + TV
During the Taliban’s rule of Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001, women and girls were shut out of public life, punishments took the form of public executions, and media was banned. That made the archives of the state-run Afghan Film — featuring scenes of women with their hair uncovered and other vignettes of the country’s past — a fast target of the Taliban.
But one government worker was instrumental in helping preserve them with lies and misdirection, according to Ibrahim Arify, former general director of Afghan Film who was on the job between 2012 and 2018. “In case the Taliban insisted on taking material away, this man organized celluloid films which did not contain important Afghan film material (e.g. preview clips) that the Taliban could take to burn,” Arify told IndieWire via email. He declined to name the individual, citing a need to protect his safety.
Efforts to protect, restore, and digitize that window...
But one government worker was instrumental in helping preserve them with lies and misdirection, according to Ibrahim Arify, former general director of Afghan Film who was on the job between 2012 and 2018. “In case the Taliban insisted on taking material away, this man organized celluloid films which did not contain important Afghan film material (e.g. preview clips) that the Taliban could take to burn,” Arify told IndieWire via email. He declined to name the individual, citing a need to protect his safety.
Efforts to protect, restore, and digitize that window...
- 10/11/2021
- by Chris Lindahl
- Indiewire
Sahraa Karimi, film director and head of the Afghan Film Organization, has been named as head of the jury at the next edition of the Stockholm International Film Festival.
The festival’s 32nd edition will run Nov. 10-21, 2021 in the Swedish capital. It expects to put on 100 film premieres in both cinemas and online via Festival on Demand. The jury will decide the winner of the Bronze Horse for best film, and Aluminium horses for best director, first film, cinematography, script, actor and actress.
Karimi, who escaped from Afghanistan and the advancing forces of the Taliban in August, will also participate in a panel that aims to raise awareness about the threat towards artists and women in the country today.
She recently wrote an open letter to the world’s media about the repressive forces in her country and the particular danger to women and girls.
“[The Taliban] will strip women’s rights,...
The festival’s 32nd edition will run Nov. 10-21, 2021 in the Swedish capital. It expects to put on 100 film premieres in both cinemas and online via Festival on Demand. The jury will decide the winner of the Bronze Horse for best film, and Aluminium horses for best director, first film, cinematography, script, actor and actress.
Karimi, who escaped from Afghanistan and the advancing forces of the Taliban in August, will also participate in a panel that aims to raise awareness about the threat towards artists and women in the country today.
She recently wrote an open letter to the world’s media about the repressive forces in her country and the particular danger to women and girls.
“[The Taliban] will strip women’s rights,...
- 9/14/2021
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Sahraa Karimi To Head Stockholm Jury
Sahraa Karimi, the Afghan filmmaker who hit the headlines last month as she staged a dramatic escape from the Taliban as they took over her home city of Kabul, will head the jury at this year’s Stockholm International Film Festival. She will also participate in a panel that aims to raise awareness about the threat towards artists and women in Afghanistan today. Karimi and her jury will oversee the awarding of prizes including the Bronze Horse for Best Film. “Cinema is a window to the identity and at the same time the stories of the people of a nation. I’m happy that Stockholm International Film Festival – with its long history of supporting director’s in countries where basic human rights are not respected – makes this statement public and is willing to support Afghan filmmakers in the fight of not being forgotten in the history of cinema,...
Sahraa Karimi, the Afghan filmmaker who hit the headlines last month as she staged a dramatic escape from the Taliban as they took over her home city of Kabul, will head the jury at this year’s Stockholm International Film Festival. She will also participate in a panel that aims to raise awareness about the threat towards artists and women in Afghanistan today. Karimi and her jury will oversee the awarding of prizes including the Bronze Horse for Best Film. “Cinema is a window to the identity and at the same time the stories of the people of a nation. I’m happy that Stockholm International Film Festival – with its long history of supporting director’s in countries where basic human rights are not respected – makes this statement public and is willing to support Afghan filmmakers in the fight of not being forgotten in the history of cinema,...
- 9/14/2021
- by Tom Grater
- Deadline Film + TV
“I am trying to start a new life, a new journey but I am very sad, of course,” said Sahraa Karimi during a virtual conversation out of the Toronto International Film Festival. “Anytime I am alone, my thinking immediately goes to Kabul.”
The director behind feature Hava, Maryam, Ayesha, and the first woman to head Afghan Film, the country’s national cinema body, fled Afghanistan in mid-August after Kabul fell to the Taliban, landing in Kyiv, Ukraine with help from the Slovak Film and Television Academy. Since fleeing the country less than one month ago, Karimi has been conducting interviews ...
The director behind feature Hava, Maryam, Ayesha, and the first woman to head Afghan Film, the country’s national cinema body, fled Afghanistan in mid-August after Kabul fell to the Taliban, landing in Kyiv, Ukraine with help from the Slovak Film and Television Academy. Since fleeing the country less than one month ago, Karimi has been conducting interviews ...
- 9/13/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
“I am trying to start a new life, a new journey but I am very sad, of course,” said Sahraa Karimi during a virtual conversation out of the Toronto International Film Festival. “Anytime I am alone, my thinking immediately goes to Kabul.”
The director behind feature Hava, Maryam, Ayesha, and the first woman to head Afghan Film, the country’s national cinema body, fled Afghanistan in mid-August after Kabul fell to the Taliban, landing in Kyiv, Ukraine with help from the Slovak Film and Television Academy. Since fleeing the country less than one month ago, Karimi has been conducting interviews ...
The director behind feature Hava, Maryam, Ayesha, and the first woman to head Afghan Film, the country’s national cinema body, fled Afghanistan in mid-August after Kabul fell to the Taliban, landing in Kyiv, Ukraine with help from the Slovak Film and Television Academy. Since fleeing the country less than one month ago, Karimi has been conducting interviews ...
- 9/13/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Sahraa Karimi, the Afghani director of the 2019 Venice premiering film, ‘Hava, Maryam, Ayesha’ and the current President of the Afhan Film…
Continue reading on SydneysBuzz The Blog »...
Continue reading on SydneysBuzz The Blog »...
- 9/11/2021
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
“Aiming for 50:50 by 2020” is the outdated slogan from a Council of Europe recommendation on gender equality in the audiovisual sector, as advertised on a pamphlet available at the third “Annual Seminar on Gender Equality and Inclusivity in the Film Industry” at the Venice Film Festival.
The event took place earlier this week at the Venice Production Bridge film market, but a raft of statistics, shown at the afternoon session, proved that this goal has not been reached.
“20:20 by 2050,” quipped one panelist during the event, which was presented mostly in Italian, with the exception of a moving speech in English by the first female Afghanistan film topper, Sahraa Karimi, who recently fled the country.
Karimi’s candid tale of her recent ordeal, balanced out the data-heavy session, which included a slew of recent studies that show how far there is to go.
“I’m not a victim. I’m a fighter.
The event took place earlier this week at the Venice Production Bridge film market, but a raft of statistics, shown at the afternoon session, proved that this goal has not been reached.
“20:20 by 2050,” quipped one panelist during the event, which was presented mostly in Italian, with the exception of a moving speech in English by the first female Afghanistan film topper, Sahraa Karimi, who recently fled the country.
Karimi’s candid tale of her recent ordeal, balanced out the data-heavy session, which included a slew of recent studies that show how far there is to go.
“I’m not a victim. I’m a fighter.
- 9/9/2021
- by Liza Foreman
- Variety Film + TV
A panel to discuss the role the film community can play in increasing awareness of the ongoing crisis in Afghanistan was held at the Venice Film Festival this afternoon.
It was notably attended by Afghan filmmakers Sahraa Karimi and Sahra Mani. The former is the first woman president of the Afghan Film Organisation and author of the recent appeal to cinema communities around the world as her country fell to the Taliban.
Mani (A Thousand Girls Like Me) is a documentary filmmaker who is presenting her latest project at the CoProduction Market here on the Lido.
Both women described the situation leading up to the Taliban seizing control of Afghanistan in August and made impassioned pleas to the film community to help their voices to be heard.
Karimi outlined the progress the film industry had made right up to the insurgency, including having several films in production and post-production, preparing...
It was notably attended by Afghan filmmakers Sahraa Karimi and Sahra Mani. The former is the first woman president of the Afghan Film Organisation and author of the recent appeal to cinema communities around the world as her country fell to the Taliban.
Mani (A Thousand Girls Like Me) is a documentary filmmaker who is presenting her latest project at the CoProduction Market here on the Lido.
Both women described the situation leading up to the Taliban seizing control of Afghanistan in August and made impassioned pleas to the film community to help their voices to be heard.
Karimi outlined the progress the film industry had made right up to the insurgency, including having several films in production and post-production, preparing...
- 9/4/2021
- by Nancy Tartaglione
- Deadline Film + TV
Women filmmakers from Afghanistan made a powerful and emotional plea for international intellectual support at a panel at the Venice Film Festival on Saturday.
Fighting back tears, Sahraa Karimi, who wrote a hard-hitting open letter about the impact of her country being taken over again by the Taliban, did not mince her words about the current situation in the country.
“The Taliban is trying to show the soft face of themselves – they are as cruel as before, but they are more smart now, because they are using modern communication technology. They will even use the cinema or or any kind of audio-visual products for propaganda,” Karimi said.
“I thought that the world should know about us, especially artists, because artists they can feel, what does it mean to live in dictatorship,” Karimi added. “In the 21st century there is a group of people coming to your country from nowhere and...
Fighting back tears, Sahraa Karimi, who wrote a hard-hitting open letter about the impact of her country being taken over again by the Taliban, did not mince her words about the current situation in the country.
“The Taliban is trying to show the soft face of themselves – they are as cruel as before, but they are more smart now, because they are using modern communication technology. They will even use the cinema or or any kind of audio-visual products for propaganda,” Karimi said.
“I thought that the world should know about us, especially artists, because artists they can feel, what does it mean to live in dictatorship,” Karimi added. “In the 21st century there is a group of people coming to your country from nowhere and...
- 9/4/2021
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Sahraa Karimi, an Afghan director who narrowly escaped the Taliban to safety in Europe just weeks ago, is turning her harrowing true story into a feature film.
Called Flight from Kabul, the film will trace the 40 hours from the moment on Aug. 15 when the Taliban invaded the Afghan capital to when Karimi finally managed to flee with her family, traveling first to Istanbul and finally to Kyiv in Ukraine.
“I want to show to the world that it was a normal day, everything was normal. And then it all collapsed,” she said, speaking exclusively to The Hollywood Reporter. “...
Called Flight from Kabul, the film will trace the 40 hours from the moment on Aug. 15 when the Taliban invaded the Afghan capital to when Karimi finally managed to flee with her family, traveling first to Istanbul and finally to Kyiv in Ukraine.
“I want to show to the world that it was a normal day, everything was normal. And then it all collapsed,” she said, speaking exclusively to The Hollywood Reporter. “...
Sahraa Karimi, an Afghan director who narrowly escaped the Taliban to safety in Europe just weeks ago, is turning her harrowing true story into a feature film.
Called Flight from Kabul, the film will trace the 40 hours from the moment on Aug. 15 when the Taliban invaded the Afghan capital to when Karimi finally managed to flee with her family, traveling first to Istanbul and finally to Kyiv in Ukraine.
“I want to show to the world that it was a normal day, everything was normal. And then it all collapsed,” she said, speaking exclusively to The Hollywood Reporter. “...
Called Flight from Kabul, the film will trace the 40 hours from the moment on Aug. 15 when the Taliban invaded the Afghan capital to when Karimi finally managed to flee with her family, traveling first to Istanbul and finally to Kyiv in Ukraine.
“I want to show to the world that it was a normal day, everything was normal. And then it all collapsed,” she said, speaking exclusively to The Hollywood Reporter. “...
The upcoming Venice Film Festival is set to become a focal point for discussion on the crisis underway in Afghanistan and how it is impacting filmmakers and Afghan artists in general as the Taliban take power.
As previously reported by Variety, Afghan filmmaker Sahraa Karimi, who is the first woman president of the country’s national film entity Afghan Film –– and made a recent appeal as she escaped from Kabul about the return of Taliban rule and the potential death knell for the country’s fledgeling but vibrant film community –– is headed to the Lido. Venice has now announced an official panel to be held on Sept. 4 on “the need to create humanitarian corridors and guarantee that [Afghan] filmmakers and other artists will be granted the status of political refugees, allowing [them] to leave the country in addition to concerns about their future and the need to help them get settled once they reach Europe,...
As previously reported by Variety, Afghan filmmaker Sahraa Karimi, who is the first woman president of the country’s national film entity Afghan Film –– and made a recent appeal as she escaped from Kabul about the return of Taliban rule and the potential death knell for the country’s fledgeling but vibrant film community –– is headed to the Lido. Venice has now announced an official panel to be held on Sept. 4 on “the need to create humanitarian corridors and guarantee that [Afghan] filmmakers and other artists will be granted the status of political refugees, allowing [them] to leave the country in addition to concerns about their future and the need to help them get settled once they reach Europe,...
- 8/28/2021
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
The Venice Film Festival unveiled details on Saturday of a panel discussion involving Afghan filmmakers covering the situation for artists in their country since the Taliban seized control.
Sahraa Karimi, head of national cinema body Afghan Film, whose feature Hava, Maryam, Ayesha screened in Venice’s Horizons sidebar in 2019, and documentary director Sahra Mani (A Thousand Girls Like Me), will take part in a panel at 3 p.m. local time at the Palazzo del Casino in Venice on Sept. 4.
Giuliano Battiston, an Italian journalist who has reported on Afghanistan extensively since 2007, will moderate the panel, which will also feature ...
Sahraa Karimi, head of national cinema body Afghan Film, whose feature Hava, Maryam, Ayesha screened in Venice’s Horizons sidebar in 2019, and documentary director Sahra Mani (A Thousand Girls Like Me), will take part in a panel at 3 p.m. local time at the Palazzo del Casino in Venice on Sept. 4.
Giuliano Battiston, an Italian journalist who has reported on Afghanistan extensively since 2007, will moderate the panel, which will also feature ...
- 8/28/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The Venice Film Festival unveiled details on Saturday of a panel discussion involving Afghan filmmakers covering the situation for artists in their country since the Taliban seized control.
Sahraa Karimi, head of national cinema body Afghan Film, whose feature Hava, Maryam, Ayesha screened in Venice’s Horizons sidebar in 2019, and documentary director Sahra Mani (A Thousand Girls Like Me), will take part in a panel at 3 p.m. local time at the Palazzo del Casino in Venice on Sept. 4.
Giuliano Battiston, an Italian journalist who has reported on Afghanistan extensively since 2007, will moderate the panel, which will also feature ...
Sahraa Karimi, head of national cinema body Afghan Film, whose feature Hava, Maryam, Ayesha screened in Venice’s Horizons sidebar in 2019, and documentary director Sahra Mani (A Thousand Girls Like Me), will take part in a panel at 3 p.m. local time at the Palazzo del Casino in Venice on Sept. 4.
Giuliano Battiston, an Italian journalist who has reported on Afghanistan extensively since 2007, will moderate the panel, which will also feature ...
- 8/28/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
Afghan filmmaker Sahraa Karimi, who was at the Venice Film Festival in 2019 with female-centric drama “Hava, Maryam, Ayesha,” will soon be traveling back to the fest to raise awareness about the plight of filmmakers in her country after the Taliban’s reclamation of power.
Karimi is also head of state-run company Afghan Film –– the first woman to head the org –– and managed to flee her country shortly after Kabul fell into the Taliban’s grip. In an open letter carried by international media earlier this month, she sounded the alarm about the return of Taliban rule and the potential death knell for the country’s cinema.
In a WhatsApp message, Karimi on Saturday confirmed to Variety that she will be in Venice to continue her campaign for the protection of Afghan filmmakers and for women in general.
There was no immediate comment from the Venice Film Festival, but it’s...
Karimi is also head of state-run company Afghan Film –– the first woman to head the org –– and managed to flee her country shortly after Kabul fell into the Taliban’s grip. In an open letter carried by international media earlier this month, she sounded the alarm about the return of Taliban rule and the potential death knell for the country’s cinema.
In a WhatsApp message, Karimi on Saturday confirmed to Variety that she will be in Venice to continue her campaign for the protection of Afghan filmmakers and for women in general.
There was no immediate comment from the Venice Film Festival, but it’s...
- 8/28/2021
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Afghan director Sahraa Karimi, the head of national cinema body Afghan Film, who last week escaped Kabul ahead of Taliban militants, will travel to the Venice Film Festival to speak on the plight of her country and its filmmakers.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter via WhatsApp from Kyiv in Ukraine, Karimi said Venice will provide a platform at this year’s festival to discuss the fate of Afghan filmmakers and the country’s cinema industry in the wake of the Taliban takeover.
Karimi is well known at the Venice festival. Her drama Hava, Maryam, Ayesha premiered there in 2019 in the Horizons sidebar....
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter via WhatsApp from Kyiv in Ukraine, Karimi said Venice will provide a platform at this year’s festival to discuss the fate of Afghan filmmakers and the country’s cinema industry in the wake of the Taliban takeover.
Karimi is well known at the Venice festival. Her drama Hava, Maryam, Ayesha premiered there in 2019 in the Horizons sidebar....
- 8/27/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Afghan director Sahraa Karimi, the head of national cinema body Afghan Film, who last week escaped Kabul ahead of Taliban militants, will travel to the Venice Film Festival to speak on the plight of her country and its filmmakers.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter via WhatsApp from Kyiv in Ukraine, Karimi said Venice will provide a platform at this year’s festival to discuss the fate of Afghan filmmakers and the country’s cinema industry in the wake of the Taliban takeover.
Karimi is well known at the Venice festival. Her drama Hava, Maryam, Ayesha premiered there in 2019 in the Horizons sidebar....
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter via WhatsApp from Kyiv in Ukraine, Karimi said Venice will provide a platform at this year’s festival to discuss the fate of Afghan filmmakers and the country’s cinema industry in the wake of the Taliban takeover.
Karimi is well known at the Venice festival. Her drama Hava, Maryam, Ayesha premiered there in 2019 in the Horizons sidebar....
- 8/27/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
The award-winning director is best known for Wolf And Sheep and The Orphanage.
Award-winning Afghan director Shahrbanoo Sadat has made it out of Afghanistan after a tense few days awaiting safe passage, her Copenhagen-based producer Katja Adomeit has announced.
Sadat is best known for her second feature Wolf And Sheep, which won the main award at Cannes Directors’ Fortnight in 2016, and third feature The Orphanage, which also played in the parallel section in 2019.
“With the help of the French government and from people all around the world, Shahrbanoo made it after many days together with nine family members through the...
Award-winning Afghan director Shahrbanoo Sadat has made it out of Afghanistan after a tense few days awaiting safe passage, her Copenhagen-based producer Katja Adomeit has announced.
Sadat is best known for her second feature Wolf And Sheep, which won the main award at Cannes Directors’ Fortnight in 2016, and third feature The Orphanage, which also played in the parallel section in 2019.
“With the help of the French government and from people all around the world, Shahrbanoo made it after many days together with nine family members through the...
- 8/23/2021
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
Kabul-based filmmaker Shahrbanoo Sadat has made it out of Afghanistan, her producer Katja Adomeit formally announced on Monday.
Sadat was able to make it through thronging crowds and Taliban checkpoints into the airport, along with nine of her family members, after numerous days of trying, said Adomeit, who is also CEO of Adomeit Film. Sadat is currently in Abu Dhabi and will soon board a plane to Europe. Her passage was aided by the French government and “help from people all around the world,” Adomeit said.
Last week, Sadat’s friends contacted by Variety remained concerned for her safety.
Sadat’s first feature, “Wolf and Sheep,” was developed with the Cannes Cinefondation Residence in 2010. She was only 20 years old at the time, making her the youngest-ever selected for the program. The film went on to win the main award at Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight section in 2016. It was the first installment...
Sadat was able to make it through thronging crowds and Taliban checkpoints into the airport, along with nine of her family members, after numerous days of trying, said Adomeit, who is also CEO of Adomeit Film. Sadat is currently in Abu Dhabi and will soon board a plane to Europe. Her passage was aided by the French government and “help from people all around the world,” Adomeit said.
Last week, Sadat’s friends contacted by Variety remained concerned for her safety.
Sadat’s first feature, “Wolf and Sheep,” was developed with the Cannes Cinefondation Residence in 2010. She was only 20 years old at the time, making her the youngest-ever selected for the program. The film went on to win the main award at Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight section in 2016. It was the first installment...
- 8/23/2021
- by Rebecca Davis
- Variety Film + TV
Shahrbanoo Sadat, the Afghan filmmaker whose credits include 2019 Cannes Directors’ Fortnight pic The Orphanage, has successfully fled Kabul, according to her Danish producers Adomeit Film.
The director had been attempting to escape the Taliban incursion, which has seen the group swiftly take Afghanistan’s capital city and overthrown the government. Many artists and journalists have been evacuated fearing persecution.
Producer Katja Adomeit said the French government had helped Sadat and nine of her family members make it through Taliban checkpoints into the embattled airport, where they were flown to Abu Dhabi ahead of boarding a plane to Europe.
Last week, Deadline reported on Afghan filmmaker Sahraa Karimi’s efforts to escape Kabul, which eventually resulted in her successfully leaving the country. Others have been less fortunate. German broadcaster Deutsche Welle said on Friday that a relative of one of its editors had been killed in a targeted attack.
For an...
The director had been attempting to escape the Taliban incursion, which has seen the group swiftly take Afghanistan’s capital city and overthrown the government. Many artists and journalists have been evacuated fearing persecution.
Producer Katja Adomeit said the French government had helped Sadat and nine of her family members make it through Taliban checkpoints into the embattled airport, where they were flown to Abu Dhabi ahead of boarding a plane to Europe.
Last week, Deadline reported on Afghan filmmaker Sahraa Karimi’s efforts to escape Kabul, which eventually resulted in her successfully leaving the country. Others have been less fortunate. German broadcaster Deutsche Welle said on Friday that a relative of one of its editors had been killed in a targeted attack.
For an...
- 8/23/2021
- by Tom Grater
- Deadline Film + TV
Hello International Insiders. Tom Grater here with the week’s biggest international headlines, from Nicole Kidman’s Hong Kong shopping trip to an Indian animation milestone. To get this sent to your inbox every Friday, sign up here.
Afghanistan Evacuation
Chaos in Kabul: Disturbing scenes in Afghanistan this week after a swift Taliban takeover of capital city Kabul caught western governments off-guard and caused panic among international personnel and local residents. Afghan filmmaker Sahraa Karimi hit the headlines on Monday when she released a desperate plea to the international filmmaking community, warning that the new regime would suppress art and that the Taliban had “massacred our people”. Video footage from Kabul airport was particularly troubling, with people so desperate to leave the country they were seen clinging to airplane wheels as they took off from the tarmac. On Tuesday, U.S. and UK troops helped secure the airport which meant...
Afghanistan Evacuation
Chaos in Kabul: Disturbing scenes in Afghanistan this week after a swift Taliban takeover of capital city Kabul caught western governments off-guard and caused panic among international personnel and local residents. Afghan filmmaker Sahraa Karimi hit the headlines on Monday when she released a desperate plea to the international filmmaking community, warning that the new regime would suppress art and that the Taliban had “massacred our people”. Video footage from Kabul airport was particularly troubling, with people so desperate to leave the country they were seen clinging to airplane wheels as they took off from the tarmac. On Tuesday, U.S. and UK troops helped secure the airport which meant...
- 8/20/2021
- by Tom Grater
- Deadline Film + TV
Asked in writing whether she could discuss the situation facing Afghan filmmakers after the Taliban’s reclamation of power last weekend, Diana Saqeb Jamal declines succinctly. “My only thought is we are fucked. Sorry.”
The director, whose short film “Roqaia” (pictured) screened in Venice’s 2019 Horizons section, has been in Canada for months. A visit to family there was prolonged by the pandemic, but she’d already booked her ticket back to Kabul and was planning a long shoot for a new documentary about women’s rights in a remote village near Iran.
The Taliban’s abrupt take-over of Kabul on Sunday simply did not compute, despite weeks spent so worried she couldn’t eat or sleep. Her friends and family were in the city; her camera, equipment, hard drives and clothes were still in her apartment. Just two summers ago, the 80-seat Ai Khanum cinema she helped to build...
The director, whose short film “Roqaia” (pictured) screened in Venice’s 2019 Horizons section, has been in Canada for months. A visit to family there was prolonged by the pandemic, but she’d already booked her ticket back to Kabul and was planning a long shoot for a new documentary about women’s rights in a remote village near Iran.
The Taliban’s abrupt take-over of Kabul on Sunday simply did not compute, despite weeks spent so worried she couldn’t eat or sleep. Her friends and family were in the city; her camera, equipment, hard drives and clothes were still in her apartment. Just two summers ago, the 80-seat Ai Khanum cinema she helped to build...
- 8/19/2021
- by Rebecca Davis
- Variety Film + TV
The good news is Sahraa Karimi has made it out of Afghanistan.
The director of Hava, Maryam, Ayesha and the head of national cinema body Afghan Film was able to escape Kabul with her family late Tuesday night thanks to help from the Slovakian, Turkish and Ukrainian governments. She is now safe and sound in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv.
“The President of Ukraine, the Turkish embassy, and the Slovak Film and Television Academy together all helped get us out. We are extremely thankful to them,” Karimi tells The Hollywood Reporter, speaking via Whatsapp from Kyiv. “I’m fine now ...
The director of Hava, Maryam, Ayesha and the head of national cinema body Afghan Film was able to escape Kabul with her family late Tuesday night thanks to help from the Slovakian, Turkish and Ukrainian governments. She is now safe and sound in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv.
“The President of Ukraine, the Turkish embassy, and the Slovak Film and Television Academy together all helped get us out. We are extremely thankful to them,” Karimi tells The Hollywood Reporter, speaking via Whatsapp from Kyiv. “I’m fine now ...
- 8/19/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
The good news is Sahraa Karimi has made it out of Afghanistan.
The director of Hava, Maryam, Ayesha and the head of national cinema body Afghan Film was able to escape Kabul with her family late Tuesday night thanks to help from the Slovakian, Turkish and Ukrainian governments. She is now safe and sound in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv.
“The President of Ukraine, the Turkish embassy, and the Slovak Film and Television Academy together all helped get us out. We are extremely thankful to them,” Karimi tells The Hollywood Reporter, speaking via Whatsapp from Kyiv. “I’m fine now ...
The director of Hava, Maryam, Ayesha and the head of national cinema body Afghan Film was able to escape Kabul with her family late Tuesday night thanks to help from the Slovakian, Turkish and Ukrainian governments. She is now safe and sound in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv.
“The President of Ukraine, the Turkish embassy, and the Slovak Film and Television Academy together all helped get us out. We are extremely thankful to them,” Karimi tells The Hollywood Reporter, speaking via Whatsapp from Kyiv. “I’m fine now ...
- 8/19/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Sahraa Karimi (left in the photo), born in 1985, comes from the second generation of Afghan refugees in Iran. At the age of fifteen, she played as an actress in two Iranian films, which brought her to study cinema in Slovakia and graduated with a Phd of directing. During these years,she has made more than 30 short fictions and documentaries, some of which won numerous awards in international film festivals. After 10 years of making many shorts and documentaries, she returned to Kabul. She made two documentaries, “Afghan Women Behind the Wheel” in 2010 and “Parlika: A Woman in the Land of Men” in 2016, which were successful internationally. “Hava, Maryam, Ayesha” is her first feature film which was shot entirely in Kabul with Afghan actors and was screened in competition at Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian Cinema, where she also attended.
Interview with Sahraa Karimi: My message is that it does not...
Interview with Sahraa Karimi: My message is that it does not...
- 8/18/2021
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Afghan filmmaker Sahraa Karimi says she has gotten out of Kabul after the director made headlines over the weekend with her open letter pleading with people to protect Afghan filmmakers and art from the Taliban. And through it all, she said that she continued filming what she witnessed.
“During these three days and nights, I protected six of my brother’s children, all of whom are girls; No one knows what happened to me,” she wrote on Twitter. “My brother has been in a bad condition for 24 hours now; But I did not forget to film; I filmed as far as I could so that we would not forget what they did to us.”
On Tuesday, Karimi sent a series of tweets saying that the Slovak Film and Television Academy, the President of Ukraine and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Turkish Embassy and the Ambassador of Slovakia all helped so she could escape Kabul,...
“During these three days and nights, I protected six of my brother’s children, all of whom are girls; No one knows what happened to me,” she wrote on Twitter. “My brother has been in a bad condition for 24 hours now; But I did not forget to film; I filmed as far as I could so that we would not forget what they did to us.”
On Tuesday, Karimi sent a series of tweets saying that the Slovak Film and Television Academy, the President of Ukraine and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Turkish Embassy and the Ambassador of Slovakia all helped so she could escape Kabul,...
- 8/17/2021
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
Sahraa Karimi, the Afghan filmmaker who hit the headlines this week with her pleas to the international cinema community as the situation worsened in her home country, says she has managed to leave Kabul.
Chaotic and distressing scenes have been relayed from Kabul airport in the last few days after the Taliban swiftly took control of the capital city, prompting many to desperately look for an escape route to avoid persecution. Earlier today, U.S., UK and other troops moved to secure the airport and begin a more orderly evacuation, following videos that showed civilians clinging to aircraft as they took off from the tarmac.
The goal is to evacuate 1,000 people a day from Kabul, but western forces have acknowledged that the Taliban could potentially close the airport at any moment.
“My dear friends do not worry, I am fine and safe,” Karimi tweeted today. She followed up with another...
Chaotic and distressing scenes have been relayed from Kabul airport in the last few days after the Taliban swiftly took control of the capital city, prompting many to desperately look for an escape route to avoid persecution. Earlier today, U.S., UK and other troops moved to secure the airport and begin a more orderly evacuation, following videos that showed civilians clinging to aircraft as they took off from the tarmac.
The goal is to evacuate 1,000 people a day from Kabul, but western forces have acknowledged that the Taliban could potentially close the airport at any moment.
“My dear friends do not worry, I am fine and safe,” Karimi tweeted today. She followed up with another...
- 8/17/2021
- by Tom Grater
- Deadline Film + TV
Before the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, when the Taliban ruled over the country, women were barred from public life, schools for girls were shuttered, and non-religious art was banned. In the subsequent two decades, women have become politicians, girls have been educated, and the country’s films have gained international attention. But that’s all threatened now that the Taliban has once again seized control of Afghanistan, Afghan filmmaker Sahraa Karimi wrote in a recent open letter.
Karimi, who in 2019 was appointed as the first woman to lead the state-run Afghan Film company, posted the letter on Twitter on Friday. In it, she pleads with members of the international film community to use their voices to fight the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan.
“Everything that I have worked so hard to build as a filmmaker in my country is at risk of falling,” Karimi wrote. “If the Taliban...
Karimi, who in 2019 was appointed as the first woman to lead the state-run Afghan Film company, posted the letter on Twitter on Friday. In it, she pleads with members of the international film community to use their voices to fight the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan.
“Everything that I have worked so hard to build as a filmmaker in my country is at risk of falling,” Karimi wrote. “If the Taliban...
- 8/16/2021
- by Chris Lindahl
- Indiewire
Afghan filmmaker Sahraa Karimi shared an open letter, urging the international community to end its silence on the tragedy that is unfolding in Afghanistan as the Taliban take over.IANSFacebook/ Sahraa KarimiFilmmaker Anurag Kashyap took to social media on Monday, August 16, to share an appeal made by Afghan filmmaker Sahraa Karimi, who is the first female chairperson of the Afghan Film Organisation. In an open letter, Sahraa appealed to the international community to end its silence on the tragedy that Afghanistan is confronting as it is overrun by the Taliban. Urging people to share the message, filmmaker Anurag Kashyap reposted Sahraa’s appeal and wrote: “Pls share it far and wide…” In the letter, Sahraa talked about the horrors the Taliban has inflicted upon the people of Afghanistan. She wrote about the Taliban selling girls off as child brides to their fighters; gouging out the eyes of women who did...
- 8/16/2021
- by SaradhaU
- The News Minute
Sahraa Karimi, the Afghan filmmaker and general director of national film company Afghan Film, has called for support from cinema communities around the world as her country falls to the Taliban insurgency.
The Taliban effectively took control of Afghanistan on Sunday after seizing the capital Kabul, overthrowing the incumbent government, with president Ashraf Ghani fleeing the country. The U.S. has evacuated embassy staff and troops have been dispatched in a bid to take control of Kabul airport to help evacuate thousands more who are fleeing the new regime.
Karimi posted a statement on Twitter addressing “all the film communities in the world”.
“I write to you with a broken heart and a deep hope that you can join me in protecting my beautiful people, especially filmmakers, from the Taliban…They have massacred our people, they kidnapped many children, they sold girls as child brides to their men,” she wrote.
The Taliban effectively took control of Afghanistan on Sunday after seizing the capital Kabul, overthrowing the incumbent government, with president Ashraf Ghani fleeing the country. The U.S. has evacuated embassy staff and troops have been dispatched in a bid to take control of Kabul airport to help evacuate thousands more who are fleeing the new regime.
Karimi posted a statement on Twitter addressing “all the film communities in the world”.
“I write to you with a broken heart and a deep hope that you can join me in protecting my beautiful people, especially filmmakers, from the Taliban…They have massacred our people, they kidnapped many children, they sold girls as child brides to their men,” she wrote.
- 8/16/2021
- by Tom Grater
- Deadline Film + TV
Sahraa Karimi, the Afghan filmmaker and general director of the country’s national film company Afghan Film, has called for support from the global film community to protect artists inside Afghanistan as the country falls to the Taliban.
In a statement posted on Twitter Sunday, addressing “all the film communities in the world,” Karimi warned that the Taliban would impose a strictly Islamic state on Afghanistan and could seek to punish artists.
“I write to you with a broken heart and a deep hope that you can join me in protecting my beautiful people, especially filmmakers, from ...
In a statement posted on Twitter Sunday, addressing “all the film communities in the world,” Karimi warned that the Taliban would impose a strictly Islamic state on Afghanistan and could seek to punish artists.
“I write to you with a broken heart and a deep hope that you can join me in protecting my beautiful people, especially filmmakers, from ...
- 8/16/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
Sahraa Karimi, the Afghan filmmaker and general director of the country’s national film company Afghan Film, has called for support from the global film community to protect artists inside Afghanistan as the country falls to the Taliban.
In a statement posted on Twitter Sunday, addressing “all the film communities in the world,” Karimi warned that the Taliban would impose a strictly Islamic state on Afghanistan and could seek to punish artists.
“I write to you with a broken heart and a deep hope that you can join me in protecting my beautiful people, especially filmmakers, from ...
In a statement posted on Twitter Sunday, addressing “all the film communities in the world,” Karimi warned that the Taliban would impose a strictly Islamic state on Afghanistan and could seek to punish artists.
“I write to you with a broken heart and a deep hope that you can join me in protecting my beautiful people, especially filmmakers, from ...
- 8/16/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Documentaries from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, and Nepal will compete for the €10,000 docs-in-progress grand prize and other awards at the 2021 edition of Cannes Docs.
From Afghanistan, prolific short filmmaker Hezbullah Sultani’s feature documentary debut “Birds Street” explores Kabul’s showcase for avian life, a corner of the city tucked away behind a mosque untouched by war or modernization. The film is produced and co-edited by Sahraa Karimi, whose feature directorial debut “Hava, Maryam, Ayesha” bowed at Venice in 2019, played at Busan and was Afghanistan’s entry for the Oscars.
“Munni,” from Bangladesh, follows the life of a child bride who went on to become an inspirational soccer coach and protector at an all-girl sports academy. It is directed by Tahrima Khan Tonni, whose “Color of Water” (2010) was funded by the British Council, and she was awarded as an International Climate Champion. It is produced by Abu Shahed Emon, whose feature...
From Afghanistan, prolific short filmmaker Hezbullah Sultani’s feature documentary debut “Birds Street” explores Kabul’s showcase for avian life, a corner of the city tucked away behind a mosque untouched by war or modernization. The film is produced and co-edited by Sahraa Karimi, whose feature directorial debut “Hava, Maryam, Ayesha” bowed at Venice in 2019, played at Busan and was Afghanistan’s entry for the Oscars.
“Munni,” from Bangladesh, follows the life of a child bride who went on to become an inspirational soccer coach and protector at an all-girl sports academy. It is directed by Tahrima Khan Tonni, whose “Color of Water” (2010) was funded by the British Council, and she was awarded as an International Climate Champion. It is produced by Abu Shahed Emon, whose feature...
- 7/4/2021
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
The 6th edition of Herat International Women’s Film Festival was held from November 16th to 19th, and Saeed Roustayi’s ‘Just 6.5′ won the Golden Earring Statue for Best Feature Narrative (World Cinema).
‘Hava, Maryam, Ayesha‘ by Afghani ‘Sahraa Karimi‘ and produced by Iranian ‘Katayoon Shahabi’ won the Golden Earring Statue for Best Feature Narrative (Women Cinema). Also, the Joint Award Certificate for the best actress went to ‘Sara Bahrami’ for ‘Axing’ made by ‘Behrouz Shoeibi’ and ‘The Visit’ by ‘Azadeh Mousavi’ won the Bronze Earring Statue for Best Short Narrative.
Hava, Maryam, Ayesha
The ‘Tangle’ directed by ‘Maleha Gholamzadeh’ won the Bronze Earring Statue for Best Animation and ‘Khatemeh’ by Hadi and Mehdi Zarei won the Bronze Earrings Statue for Feature Documentary.
Afshin Hashemi’s film ‘Goodbye Shirazi Girl’ also received a certificate of appreciation for the different view of women in his film
The 6th edition of the...
‘Hava, Maryam, Ayesha‘ by Afghani ‘Sahraa Karimi‘ and produced by Iranian ‘Katayoon Shahabi’ won the Golden Earring Statue for Best Feature Narrative (Women Cinema). Also, the Joint Award Certificate for the best actress went to ‘Sara Bahrami’ for ‘Axing’ made by ‘Behrouz Shoeibi’ and ‘The Visit’ by ‘Azadeh Mousavi’ won the Bronze Earring Statue for Best Short Narrative.
Hava, Maryam, Ayesha
The ‘Tangle’ directed by ‘Maleha Gholamzadeh’ won the Bronze Earring Statue for Best Animation and ‘Khatemeh’ by Hadi and Mehdi Zarei won the Bronze Earrings Statue for Feature Documentary.
Afshin Hashemi’s film ‘Goodbye Shirazi Girl’ also received a certificate of appreciation for the different view of women in his film
The 6th edition of the...
- 11/21/2020
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Sahraa Karimi, born in 1985, comes from the second generation of Afghan refugees in Iran. At the age of fifteen, she played as an actress in two Iranian films, which brought her to study cinema in Slovakia and graduated with a Phd of directing. During these years,she has made more than 30 short fictions and documentaries, some of which won numerous awards in international film festivals. After 10 years of making many shorts and documentaries, she returned to Kabul. She made two documentaries, “Afghan Women Behind the Wheel” in 2010 and “Parlika: A Woman in the Land of Men” in 2016, which were successful internationally. “Hava, Maryam, Ayesha” is her first feature film which was shot entirely in Kabul with Afghan actors.
We sat down with the director to discuss the production of her first feature, the status of women in Afghanistan and the reactions to “Hava, Maryam, Ayesha”.
“Hava, Maryam, Ayesha” is screening...
We sat down with the director to discuss the production of her first feature, the status of women in Afghanistan and the reactions to “Hava, Maryam, Ayesha”.
“Hava, Maryam, Ayesha” is screening...
- 2/18/2020
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.