The "Tatami" Director: Will Never Be Shown in Iran

She made a strong impression as an Iranian journalist in Ali Abbasi's acclaimed film "Holy Spider". But she herself has not been able to reside in her home country Iran since 2008, when she was to be put on trial due to a private sex video that leaked into the public domain.

Now, she has made the Iran-critical drama "Tatami" together with the Israeli director Guy Nattiv – where she also plays one of the leading roles.

The film will never be able to be shown in Iran, but there is an underground market for DVDs and VHS, she says when TT meets her at the 2023 film festival in Venice.

Harbors Hope

Then, there is still over a month left until Hamas' massacre in Israel and the extremely escalated violence and tension in the Middle East. Zar Amir Ebrahimi still harbors hope that it is possible to bridge the tensions and hopes that the collaboration between her and Guy Nattiv will lead to more national collaborations, not least in film.

"Tatami" takes place in the Jewish world. An Iranian team is at a championship in Tbilisi. The Iranian Leyla has a chance to win, but her coach, played by Zar Amir, receives orders from Tehran to make Leyla fake an injury and lose.

How are they to do it? If they do not obey the orders, their families in Iran may be punished.

Guy first offered me one of the leading roles, then also to be co-director, not least because he does not speak Farsi. It took some time, we had a good collaboration, and I noticed that he trusted me.

"Wanted to Understand Her"

At first, she thought the role of the coach Maryam was not developed enough, she explains.

I worked on it, I wanted to try to understand her, how she reacted to the pressure she was under. I created a background story for myself.

Judo is a major sport in countries like Iran, Israel, and Georgia.

But most talented female judokas have fled from Iran. It is not possible to live in that system, says Zar Amir Ebrahimi – who is still hopeful about the situation in Iran.