Narges Kalhor

“No German filmmaker can make this film in Germany and no Iranian woman can make it in Iran.”
(Narges Kalhor)

The film Shahid deals with major political issues in painful, absurdly funny twists. Director Narges Kalhor wants to give up her surname “Shahid” – in Iran it means “martyr”. She wants nothing to do with this ideology, especially not in her own name. The application leads her to the spirits of her ancestors and into the mills of German bureaucracy. Between documentary, experiment and self-commentary, the film explores her family history, the history of Iran and questions of identity – and holds up a multi-layered mirror to radical ideologies.

Narges Kalhor was born in Tehran and is an Iranian-German director living in Germany. She applied for asylum here in 2009. Her short film Sensitive Content attracted international attention. Shahid (2024) screened in the Berlinale Forum and won several awards.

Location: Gloria & Gloriette Heidelberg

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