“The world of sex, drugs, and underground nightclubs in Iran provides the backdrop for Maryam Keshavarz’s lusty, dreamy take on the passionate teenagers behind the hijabs.” — San Francisco Bay Guardian
You lose count of the taboos that this Iranian-American director is violating... Watch for the fireworks once Circumstance reaches Iran.
Screened as part of NZIFF 2011
Circumstance 2011
Sharayet
“Risking jail and worse are the sassy, privileged Atafeh and the beautiful, orphaned Shireen, who, much like young women anywhere, just want to be free… The difference here is that they’re under constant, unnerving surveillance, in a country where more than 70 percent of the population is younger than 30. Nevertheless, within their mansion walls and without, beneath graffitied walls and undulating at intoxicating house parties, the two girls begin to fall in love with each other, as Atafeh’s handsome, albeit creepy older brother Mehran gazes on… Filmed underground in Beirut, with layers that permit both pleasure and protest… Circumstance viscerally transmits the realities and fantasies of Iranian young women on the verge.” — Kimberly Chun, San Francisco Bay Guardian