Abbas Kiarostami: A Report + Q&A

An analysis of the style and vision of Abbas Kiarostami, the world’s most iconic Iranian filmmaker, through the lens of his earliest work, including his first short film (Bread & Alley, 1970) and, particularly, his first feature, The Report. This early example of Kiarostami’s work gives insight into his poetic, humanistic tendencies, combining allegorical storytelling with a documentary, neo-realist sensibility, and often exploring the very nature of film as fiction, that have pervaded his work ever since, including such recent international sensations as A Taste of Cherry and Certified Copy. Exclusive interviews with film critics, historians and scholars (including the late great Andrew Sarris) and those directly involved in the making of The Report provide a look at how the career of this master independent auteur began and was shaped.
Director’s Statement: I have a very deep connection to Iranian cinema, and, as such, Abbas Kiarostami’s international success could not please me more. And yet, I felt that people needed to see the origins from which this incredible talent sprang. By looking at his earliest work, including his groundbreaking early feature The Report, I want people to understand something deeper about both Mr. Kiarostami and Iranian cinema in general.

Festivals: The World Film Festival, Montreal, 2013
- EPOS-The International Art Film Festival, Tel Aviv Museum of Art, 2014
- So Much to Teach Us: Kiarostami Films Iran, with 8 films By Kiarostami
The Indiana University Cinema, 2014
        -Iranian Film Festival, San Francisco, 2014
        -Middle East Studies Association Film Festival, 2014
Writer/Director/Producer: Bahman Maghsoudlou
Editors: Abbas Ahmadi Motlagh, Ghasem Ebrahimian, Lillie Zuck,
Camera: Mohammad Abdi, Jean Francois Chevalier, Kambiz Kooshan,
               Bahram Molaie, Bahman Maghsoudlou, Mahmoud Oskoui,
               Seifollah Samadian, Bahman Soltani
Still: Hamideh Sharifraad
Poster: Ali Bagheri
With: Kourosh Afsharpanah, Aydin Aghdashlou, Shohreh Aghdashloo,
          Godfrey Cheshire, Hagir Daryoush, Pierre-Henry Deleau, Jean-Michel Frodon,
          Farrokh Ghaffary, Fereydoun Hoveyda, Richard Pena, Andrew Sarris, Martin
          Scorsese, Yousef Shahab, Sheila Whitaker, Alireza Zarindast, and
          Abbas Kiarostami
Executive Producers: Behzad Maghsoudlou, Bijan Maghsoudlou, Bahman Maghsoudlou
Color and B/W, 88 Minutes, Persian & English with English Subtitles, International Film & Video Center, Copyright, 2013