Two short films written, directed and edited by Mohsen Makhmalbaf, one of
Iran's leading filmmakers. Images from the Qajar Dynasty (1993, 18
mins.) was made while Makhmalbaf was working on his acclaimed feature
Once Upon a Time, Cinema. It is a fascinating documentary that uses
rare photos and early film footage shot during that late nineteenth and
early 20th centuries at the Shah's court, along with family portraits and
fabulous tile mosaics. This snippet of the past reflects the director's
great interest in and extensive research of the era. The School Blown
Away by the Wind (1996, 8 mins.) is set in the school for nomad
children seen in Makhmalbaf's Gabbeh. In this brief, humanist tale,
an old man enters the improvised classroom to revisit memories of his
youth. In Farsi with English subtitles.
