Honouring Abbas Kiarostami’s immense contribution to the Iranian film industry, Faculty of Communication Media and Broadcasting (FCMB) students paid tribute to the revered Iranian auteur through a discussion and movie screening on 24 August.
Abbas Kiarostami was a multi-award-winning Iranian film director; screenwriter, photographer and film producer who single handedly put Iran on the map of world cinema. Born in 1940, he originally studied painting at the University of Tehran; Kiarostami began working as a graphic designer and shot for Iranian TV. In 1969 he joined Kanun (the Centre for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults).
He began making films in 1970 and continued working in his homeland after the 1979 Islamic Revolution. With more than 40 films, Kiarostami produced philosophical works that revitalised the genres of documentary and narrative fiction. His films expressed the traditions of oral storytelling and classic poetry, as well as the modesty of Persian architecture. Abbas Kiarostami passed away at the age of 76, on 5 July.
During the session two of Abbas Kiarostami’s movies; ‘Ten’ and ‘Taste of Cherry’ were screened. Leading the discussion was Amin Maher, former Limkokwing University Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in Digital Film & Television student, who also acted on Abbas Kiarostami’s movie ‘Ten’.
‘Ten’ saw eleven film festival nominations in Europe and the USA from 2002-2004 and it was screened in more than 60 international film festivals around the world.
It was nominated for Palme d’Or Cannes International Festival in France and ranked number 447 in Empire Magazine’s 2008 list of the 500 greatest movies of all time. The movie also ranked number 47 in Empire Magazine’s ‘100 Best Films of World Cinema’ in 2010.
Kiarostami’s 1997 movie ‘Taste of Cherry’ was awarded Palme d’Or top prize at Cannes.
Amin Maher reckoned the discussion was beneficial to film students as it highlighted tips on making meaningful movies with a small budget.
“We discussed Abbas Kiarostami’s directing style and achievements both in cinema and art. He had a minimalistic cinema style with low budget productions but he created masterpieces.”
“In my view, screenings like these are important. Students would not only learn how to reach their fullest potential but they would learn how to make great movies with low budgets without having support from agents and distributors,” Amin Maher concluded.
Film student, Sam Suo Cai Wang learned a few styles and techniques from watching the films produced by Kiarostami.
“I wasn’t aware of Iranian cinema before but today I learned a lot. Kiarostami indeed was one of the greatest filmmakers and I picked a few styles and techniques from watching his movies. He showed how good film can be produced through creative thinking to overcome budget limits,” said Sam.
Another student, Du Fu, learned how Kiarostami used space as his tool to create certain effects on viewers.
“This screening was great, I got to know more about yet another cinema and directing style. This would help me in terms of developing my scenes and dialogues, getting the rights shots to connect to the audience,” Du Fu conceded.
Photo of Abbas Kiarostami courtesy of cinematografo.it.