By Ali Moosavi.
I prefer films and novels in which a character who plays a critical part in the story is mainly absent.”
With just two feature films and a TV series under his belt, writer-director Nima Javidi has established himself in the upper echelons of Iranian cinema. He got off to a flying start with his debut feature, Melbourne (2014), which was set on the last day of a couple (Payman Maadi and Negar Javaherian) in Tehran who were about to emigrate to Melbourne, Australia. During their last few hours before their flight, as a favour for a friend, they look after a small baby. This however, has an unforeseen and life changing consequences. Melbourne won a host of awards from international film festivals, including Best Film from Cairo International Film Festival and Mar Del Plata Film Festival and Best Screenplay from Asia Pacific Screen Awards. Javidi followed that with The Warden / Sorkhpoost, one of my Iranian films of the year in 2019 (Film International). This film was also set in one day, in the course of which a prison warden (Navid Mohammadzadeh) has to successfully transfer the prisoners to another location to allow for an airport expansion and, as a reward, receive a promotion. One missing prisoner puts a spanner in the works, further complicated by the warden’s romantic interest in a beautiful social worker (Parinaz Izadyar) determined to save the missing prisoner from impending execution. Javidi followed The Warden with Actor (see top image), a 20-episode series about two actors (Navid Mohammadzadeh and Ahmad Mehranfar) for hire who accept often dangerous assignments for which they need to take on different roles. Actor became the most successful Iranian TV series globally, when it was sold to Arte in France.
I caught up with Javidi as he was in pre-production of his new venture, a miniseries set in pre-revolution Iran.
Were you active in cinema whilst at university?
Oh yes and my interest in filmmaking preceded going to college. I made an experimental short film with a Handicam and then during my first year at college I made a more professional short film which was shown at a number of film festivals and won prizes. Though I was studying mechanical engineering, my mind was totally on cinema and film making.
So throughout your college years you were involved in filmmaking?
Yes and that’s the reason why it took me five years to complete a four-year degree course and see all my classmates graduate before me! I spent most of my time photographing, writing scripts, making short films, reading books about cinema, reading world literature. So in effect, preparing myself for career in cinema.
Where did you get the idea for your first feature, Melbourne?
From my late teens I kept a notebook where I jotted done ideas which came to me with potential for expansion into stories. I made Melbourne in my early thirties and its inception was a memory I had of a picnic with a bunch of friends. A young couple who had a baby asked me if I could look after him for a couple of hours while they went on a short errand. The baby was sleep and I agreed to have an eye on him. I remember hearing a loud bang and then noticing that the baby was still sleep. For a moment I panicked and checked the baby and luckily he was fine. That momentary fear and worry was entrenched in my mind and I wondered what would have happened if something had happened to the baby. I noted it down in my notebook and years later, when I was preparing my first feature, I thought I could develop that incident into a script.
For your first feature you managed to attract a top cast and crew.
I think it was because of the script. Later on, that screenplay won a number of international awards, starting with Stockholm Film Festival. I had spent a year on that script, re-writing it numerous times. I received very positive feedback from everyone who read it. The actual pre-production and shooting took a long time, as it was my first movie and I was unknown in the industry.
In your movies the location is a principal character. Melbourne starts by a vista of Tehran from which the couple are emigrating and The Warden’s initial shot is that of the prison which warden is handing over. Both these events are taking place within a few hours.
Perhaps it is partly due to the fact that I have worked in the construction industry and have an interest in buildings. Also, I love films which are set in a single location, as I believe that this limitation of location increases creativity. The new TV series that I’m making also has this distinction.
That and setting your story in one day with a deadline also increases tension.
Yes it does. I have a minimalistic approach to both writing and directing. I like creating a minimalistic world. This also extends to minimizing the time; the events in both Melbourne and The Warden take place in a single day.
In Melbourne the veteran Iranian director Kianoush Ayari is credited as consultant to the director. How did you utilize him?
As it was my first movie, I was legally obliged to have a consultant assisting me. Kianoush Ayari was in high demand and he would pick whom he would consult based on the quality of the screenplay. He read my script and loved it and told me that he would definitely join my film as a consultant. I learned many things from him, not only about cinema, but also life lessons. It was a difficult film to make with many challenges and he supported me all the way; for which I’m eternally grateful.
Your use of sound in your movies is also very striking.
Yes, for me the sound is very important and I think sometimes it is not given the attention it deserves. I start thinking about the sound when I’m writing the screenplay. Sometimes the tone of the voice of the actors when delivering their dialogue becomes more important for me than their facial expression. For me all the individual elements of filmmaking are important. I don’t just focus on the performance of the actors, composition and framing of the shots. All the elements such as production design, costumes, sound, lighting, are important for me. I try to make sure that they all are in harmony with each other and no single element stands out.
Your screenplays also have a strong narrative drive and are full of twists and turns to fully maintain the interest of the audience.
This is because I like films that have a strong narrative element. Maybe when I get older this might change.
Melbourne won a legion of awards from multiple film festivals. Did that create an easier path in your career moving forward?
Unfortunately, no! The awards did increase my self-confidence but also made me more sensitive to my work and as a result it took me four years to start another project. I kept throwing out what I was writing; not being satisfied with its quality. Until I reached a stage where I decided I have to stop this and finish a screenplay. During that period I wrote three or four stories, a complete screenplay and eventually I wrote The Warden. I think this was due to inexperience, otherwise I would have made a movie immediately after Melbourne.
Some of the scenes in your movies remind me of some of my favourite movies. For example, when the husband in Melbourne is examining the photos of the baby, I was reminded of David Hemmings examining the photos of the couple in the park in Antonioni’s Blow-Up.
Yes, that’s right. These have entered my unconscious mind. Also, it’s partly due to love of films with a mystery element.
Where did the idea for The Warden originate from?
It was from a piece of news that I read on the net. It was about a prison in one of the towns in Iran which adjoined an airport. The airport wanted to expand, which required the prison to relocate. But the prison authorities kept stating that this is a national security issue and they cannot simply move. This discussion between the parties went on for some time and was latched on to by the media and I kept following it. I jotted this down in my notebook. After a few years I went back to it and turned it into The Warden. Another factor was that I had made a contemporary film in Melbourne and wanted to set my new film in an era where I was not even born yet. It was a major challenge and before embarking on it I needed to travel to a few locations, meet the local people and familiarize myself with their history. These were very interesting for me and this research process is one of the enjoyable parts of my filmmaking. I become like a tourist exploring new places. In The Warden I had to create a prison in the 1960’s and I loved creating that world.
I have a minimalistic approach to both writing and directing. I like creating a minimalistic world. This also extends to minimizing the time…to a single day.”
Where did you find that old building?
We completely constructed it from scratch. We spent a long time searching for such a building in many Iranian towns but couldn’t find one.
Your production designer (Mohsen Nasrollahi) and cinematographer (Houman Behmanesh) did exemplary work on that film.
One hundred percent true. They both did. Houman’s work was not just noticed and applauded by critics, but also by the audiences. All the cast and crew came into that project, highly energized and motivated, with the aim to do their best. My producer was also very brave to accept this project which was turned down by many other producers.
This was also the first feature in Iran for the film’s composer, Ramin Kousha. How did you get to know him?
He had sent me messages and his resume via social media, expressing his interest to work with me. He had studied music and was an assistant to Hans Zimmer. At that time, he was not known in Iran and it was a bit of a risk using him but I thought The Warden would be a good opportunity to work with him. He was based in USA but he visited Iran and I gave him the script, which he read before going back to the States. He would then send me music tracks and it was a very enjoyable and fruitful collaboration. In fact, I received a lot of positive feedback from the audiences regarding the music for The Warden. He is now an established name in the Iranian cinema and has composed the soundtrack for many movies. My collaboration with him has continued; first with the series Actor and for the series that I am making now.
The Warden combined several genres together: thriller, love story, social commentary and politics. This was something new in the current Iranian cinema.
Yes and for this reason it was a risky enterprise to undertake. The investors and producers normally prefer the tried and tested genres. My series, Actor was also risky for the same reasons. But I believe that one cannot grow as an artist by just sticking to formulas which have worked in the past. I am glad to have taken those risks.
I think a wise decision that you made in The Warden was only briefly show a shadowy figure of Sorkhpoost, the hiding prisoner, from afar.
In general I prefer films and novels in which a character who plays a critical part in the story is mainly absent; an example being Rebecca. My favourite novel is Mashenka / Mary by Vladimir Nabokov, a terrific novel about an absent character.
The Warden was a film that I thought would be globally successful as it is has a strong narrative with compelling thriller and romantic elements. However, it wasn’t the success that I had expected.
You are correct. It suffered from poor distribution outside Iran. Unlike Melbourne, it didn’t have much success in world markets and in this business you only get one shot and if you miss it, it’s gone. The sanctions on Iran also affected its distribution.
You also wrote the script of The Sun, which was directed by the well-known Iranian director Majid Majidi (Children of Heaven).
After Melbourne I received an offer from Majidi to write the script for a movie that he was going to make in India. For various reasons that didn’t happen but I wanted to work with him as I was a fan of his movies. An opportunity came up later when we were both free. We sat together and discussed several ideas which eventually resulted in The Sun. Working with Majidi was a very enjoyable experience for me. Though he was a veteran director with several movies under his belt, his approach was like a first-time director, full of energy and motivation.
Where did the idea for your series, Actor, originate from?
Some ten years previous to that, in my notebook I had written an idea for a movie about a troupe of theatre actors who are seeking revenge from someone. Dressed in their theatre costumes, they find that person, with the intention of just frightening him, but they commit murder. Later on, when I was preparing to make a TV series, I thought that idea has the potential to be expanded into a series. My all-time favourite Iranian film is The Last Act / Pardehe Akhar (1991) by Varuzh Karim-Masihi. I have seen that movie dozens of times since my childhood and it has entered my subconscious. I think that also had an impact on the storyline of Actor.
Usually for a TV series, even limited ones with a few episodes, there is a team of writers and the episodes are directed by different directors. Yet you wrote and directed all twenty episodes of Actor. That must have been a major challenge.
This has been the norm in Iran for making TV series. Though having a writers’ room and collaborative writing and utilizing multiple directors is now becoming more common in Iran for TV series, which I believe is the correct path.
I believe you have successfully overcome this challenge of writing episodes with a multitude of actors and a mixture of different genres: thriller, comedy, horror, romance.
The multi-genre element is driven by the story. It was a major risk and I was aware that what I undertaking was very risky. Because the audience, when confronted by several genres, takes a step back and reconsiders whether to stick with the series. But I thought since the story dictates that these actors have to continuously take on different roles and be confronted with different situations; some which may be tragic and some comical, I can set it in a variety of genres and it will be acceptable to the audience. Fortunately, this happened and the series was successful. Writing twenty episodes was very difficult but I enjoyed the challenge.
Did you write all the twenty episodes before the shooting started?
I knew the general storyline but only had the skeleton. Sometimes the story would take me to different directions and I would adjust to it. If I want to distinguish Actor from The Warden and Melbourne, in the latter two the framework was more defined but I was freer in Actor to experiment and move within different genres and was more akin to writing a novel than a screenplay.
Was Actor made during COVID?
Yes and that was the reason why I decided to write a TV series. I had written the screenplay for a movie and was ready to go into pre-production when COVID and home quarantine happened. I thought since the quarantine is likely to be in place for an extended time, I could use the time to write a series. I had been thinking about making a series for a few years. TV series had taken huge leaps forward globally in terms of both quantity and quality. So I thought I’ll have a go and started writing it, despite initial reservations.
Nowadays the number of high quality TV series is increasing all the time and more people prefer to sit home and watch series than go to the movies. What do you think are the reasons for this?
I think COVID had an effect on this. People had to stay at home and got used to watching TV series. I also think that competition in making series is much tougher than in film making. The TV audience by clicking the remote control can change from one series to another, whereas if they have bought a cinema ticket and sitting in the auditorium they are less likely to abandon the movie. Therefore, you give more chances to the filmmakers. In older days, the pilot of a TV series was very important in the series survival and success. Now, the series’ teaser and even the opening scene determine its success.
There is a nice mixture of genres in Actor. A father hiring the actors to find his missing daughter has a film noir structure while another storyline has strong elements of both comedy and horror. This was obviously very challenging to write but you must be satisfied with the results.
Yes and I enjoyed the challenge and the series won a number of writing awards. I think Actor is the result of accepting the risks by me, my crew, the investors and other participants. We took risks, didn’t follow previously successful paths and I’m glad that perhaps those tired of the old formulas took to our series.
Can you tell me about the play that the two actors rehearse in between their assignments?
I adapted Anthony Shaffer’s play, Sleuth which was made into a movie by Joseph Mankiewicz in 1972. I set it in the past in Iran.
You start each episode with All the world’s a stage quote from Shakespeare’s As You Like It.
Yes and that quote was a great inspiration for me and gave me a lot of self-confidence. As we move forward in the series, you’ll notice that not just the actors, but all the people in the series are kind of performing. That quote provided the theme for the series.
Actor was the first Iranian series to be shown internationally. What kind of feedback you have received?
Yes it was shown by Arte in France and I have seen very positive comments in the media, both by the audiences and the critics. I re-edited the 20 episodes into two seasons of 9 and 8 episodes and both seasons were picked up by Arte.
You are also currently working on a series.
Yes, I enjoyed the experience in Actor and its international success was also a motivator for me to continue making TV series. My new series will be a miniseries but I will also return to film making.
Have you received offers to work abroad?
Yes and I am considering those offers. For me it is not important where I work as long as I can tell an interesting story through the medium of cinema and TV. I have always tried not to make a film or series for a specific audience and I think this has been one of the reasons for the successes that I have had.
Ali Moosavi has worked in documentary television and has written for Film Magazine (Iran), Cine-Eye (London), and Film International (Sweden). He contributed to the second volume of The Directory of World Cinema: Iran (Intellect, 2015).