El Documental del mes - THE QUEEN AND I - el Documental del mes

Nearly 30 years after Iranian-Swedish filmmaker Nahid Persson Sarvestani participated in the Islamic Revolution to overthrow the Shah’s Monarchy regime in Iran, she returns from exile to her native country. Once there, she takes the chance to make a film about Farah Diba, the widow of the Sha. The former Queen welcomes Nahid into her life, but soon finds out about the filmmaker’s role in the Revolution and becomes suspicious of her intentions. She stops the filming, but after a few months, Nahid wins the Queen’s trust again. She will have to confront the Queen with the failings of her husband’s regime that led to the Revolution, without jeopardizing the production of the film.

In the process of filming the antagonist of her revolutionary past, Nahid and the Queen start an unforeseen journey of two women in exile, who have more in common than any of them could envision.

Born in Shiraz, Iran, Nahid Persson Sarvestani took political asylum in Sweden after the revolution that took place in Iran in 1979.

Persson’s social-political films have won 25 awards including an International Emmy for Prostitution Behind the Veil. In 2006, after the release of the award winning documentary, Persson was arrested in Iran due to her harsh and critical depiction of women under the Islamic Republic regime. While staying under house arrest, she was secretly completing her documentary Four Wives - One Man. The film is critical with polygamy.

The Queen and I, which is the result of two year’s work, was released worldwide in conjunction with the 30-year anniversary of the Islamic Revolution in 2009.

> Best Film Award at the Vera Film Festival, Finland, 2009
> Italy Award at the International Radio, TV, and Web Competition. Italy, 2009.
> Sundance Film Festival, USA, 2009.
> IDFA Amsterdam International Documentary Film Festival, The Netherlands, 2009.
> Los Angeles Film Festival, USA, 2009.