52 Films by Women Vol 3. 9. GHOLAM (Director: Mitra Tabrizian)
For some, film directing isn’t a career, rather a diversion. It’s an opportunity to go beyond one’s usual field, to explore the potential of the medium. The risk is negligible: if it goes wrong, you can always return to the day job without shame or ignominy; indeed, you can blame the producer. Born in Tehran in 1956 and based in London, Mitra Tabrizian is an established photographer who has exhibited around the world – her CV lists shows in London, New York, Vancouver, Milan, Antwerp, Berlin, Queensland and Graz, amongst other cities. She has also directed three short films: The Predator (2004), The Journey of No Return (1993) and The Third Woman (1991). Gholam is her first feature. Set in London in 2011, as uprisings collectively dubbed the Arab Spring take place across the Middle East, it is inspired by a photograph Tabrizian made of an Iranian taxi driver in the capital. Working with co-writer Cyrus Massoudi, Tabrizian remakes or rather riffs on Martin Scorsese’s 1976 se...