Yusef Jalali
Time to announce the best films themed with the concept of human resistance against wars, occupation and racism.
The 16th edition of the International Resistance Film Festival wrapped up with an awards ceremony in Tehran.Over 8,000 films from 180 countries were submitted to the cinematic event. Organizers say this year, foreign participation in the festival has seen an unprecedented spike.The festival lets in short-length and feature-length documentaries, short-length and feature-length films, animations and music videos relevant to the festival’s topics.The festival normally accepts films themed with resistance against war and injustice, but this year, resistance against COVID-19 was added as a new category under the title of Health Defenders. The aim is to acknowledge the sacrifices of health workers in the fight against the novel virus.Some 1,300 works themed with the coronavirus were sent to the festival.This music video nabbed an award in the health defenders category. Dubbed one day Again, the video narrates the life of a boy whose mother works as a nurse. With the spread of the coronavirus, his mother works extra shifts to help her fellow health workers stem the tide of the outbreak. He misses his mom and dedicates a song to her.This film was picked as the best motion graphics about the coronavirus. As its producers say, the film tries to raise public awareness about COVID-19, while encouraging them to observe health protocols.The Intl. Resistance Film Festival was launched in 1983. The biannual event coincides with the national Sacred Defense Week, which commemorates the 1980-to-1988 Iraqi imposed war on Iran.Inspired by the eight year war, the festival tries to promote the culture of resistance against oppression while persuading world leaders to avoid wars and welcome peace.