Unfinished Song

Colour, 35mm
Iran, 2001, 94 min
Section: Official Selection - Competition

Synopsis

A young musicologist sets out for the north-western province of Khorasan to compile and record traditional songs. This part of Iran, where he was born years before, is considered the cradle of folklore, but after he arrives the musicologist discovers that only lullabies and dirges have been preserved of the original folk culture. At the same time, he can find no one willing to sing them because women are forbidden to do so. After futilely attempting to convince the local inhabitants to cooperate in his research, he learns of a woman named Heyran who ended up in prison because of her love for music. After surmounting a number of obstacles the protagonist manages to contact her and tries to gain her confidence. He comes to realise what an important role his own family had in Heyran’s life.

About the director

Maziar Miri (b. 1971, Teheran) began working as an editor for television, working on dozens of films and series. He began as a director with three short documentaries about nature in Iran. His first attempt at drama came with the short Robin Hood (1996), a film which banned to this day. He also worked on the television series Rezayat Family (1997) and shot a short documentary on Iranian ‘classical’ music, a work which has not yet been completed. At home, his feature debut Unfinished Song was immediately regarded by critics as controversial.