''A Cube of Sugar'' ( fa, یک حبه قند, or ) is a 2011 Iranian

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

directed by

Seyyed Reza Mir-Karimi Reza Mirkarimi ( fa, رضا میرکریمی; born 27 January 1967) is an Iranian screenwriter and film director. He was also Secretary of the International Film Festival of the Fajr Film Festival. Career He graduated from Fine Arts University ...

. It had its world premiere at the

Busan International Film Festival The Busan International Film Festival (BIFF, previously Pusan International Film Festival, PIFF), held annually in Haeundae-gu, Busan (''also'' Pusan), South Korea, is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia. The first festi ...

on 8 October 2011. On 24 September 2012, the film was selected as the Iranian entry for the Best Foreign Language Oscar at the

85th Academy Awards The 85th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best 2012 in film, films of 2012 and took place on February 24, 2013, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood, ...

. However, on the same day, the head of Iran's government-controlled cinema agency called for a boycott of the Oscars due to a video on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

titled ''

Innocence of Muslims ''Innocence of Muslims'' is an anti-Islamic short film that was written and produced by Nakoula Basseley Nakoula. Two versions of the 14-minute video were uploaded to YouTube in July 2012, under the titles "The Real Life of Muhammad" and "Muhamm ...

'' that originated in the United States.

Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency was estab ...

reported that Iran's Culture and Islamic Guidance Minister Mohammad Hosseini had confirmed that Iran would boycott.

Plot

The film features two concurrent stories: the main plot centering on Pasandideh, and a subplot focusing on Hormoz. The main plot chronicles a day of life in a very traditional Iranian family. Pasandideh, the youngest girl in the family, lives with her mother, her old uncle, and aunt. They live in an old house in a village. She is soon supposed to marry a family friend's grandson, who is studying abroad in a western country. Everything is already arranged for Pasandideh's marriage, and all of her sisters arrive at the old house one by one. Meanwhile, Hormoz, the husband of Pasandideh's sister, has recently been released from prison. With the aid of Hamid, the husband of another sister of Pasandideh, he tries to find a treasure. They believe it is buried somewhere in Pasandideh's house and sneak around while the marriage ceremony is taking place.

Cast

* Puneh Abdolkarim-Zadeh as Shamsi * Amir Hossein Arman as Ghasem *

Farhad Aslani Farhad ( fa, فرهاد ''farhād''), also spelt Ferhaad or Ferhod, has been a Persian name for men since the Parthians, first recorded for Arsacid kings circa 170 BC. Etymology Modern Persian name ''Farhād'' () is derived from Middle Persian ' ...

as Haj Naser *

Shamsi Fazlollahi Shamsi Fazlollahi ( fa, شمسی فضل‌اللهی, also Romanized as "Shamsi Fazlollāhi"; born December 1, 1941 in Tehran, Iran) is an Iranian actress. Shamsi Fazlollahi began her acting career in the 1950s performing for radio theater sho ...

as Uncle's wife * Hedayat Hashemi as Hamid *

Asghar Hemmat Asghar ( fa, اصغر, links=no) is a Persian name and may refer to: Given name * Asghar Ali (cricketer, born 1971), United Arab Emirates cricketer * Asghar Ali (cricketer, born 1924) (1924–1979), cricketer in India from 1943 to 1949, and in Paki ...

as Hormoz *

Negar Javaherian Negar Javaherian ( fa, نگار جواهریان, born January 12, 1983) is an Iranian actress. She is best known for her acting in ''Gold and Copper'' (2010), '' Here Without Me'' (2011), ''A Cube of Sug''ar (2011) and '' The Painting Pool'' (20 ...

as Pasandideh *

Reza Kianian Reza Kianian ( fa, رضا کیانیان , born June 19, 1951 in Tehran) is an Iranian actor. He has received various accolades, including two Crystal Simorgh, a Hafez Awards, Hafez Award and two Iran Cinema Celebration Awards. Early life Kian ...

as Jafar *

Baran Kosari Baran Kosari ( fa, باران کوثری; ; born 16 September 1985) is an Iranian actress. Biography She graduated from ''Soureh academy''. ''The Best Papa of the World'' (1991) is her first acting experience. She had appearances in some of her ...

as Grooms Relative * Rohullah Mofidi as Doctor * Parivash Nazarieh as Masumeh *

Saeed Poursamimi Saeed Poursamimi (Persian: سعید پورصمیمی, born February 29, 1944) is an Iranian actor. He has received various accolades, including three Crystal Simorgh for Best Supporting Actor, making him the only actor to have three wins in that ...

as Uncle Ezzatolah *

Rima Raminfar Rima Raminfar ( fa, ریما رامین‌فر; born March 25, 1970) is an Iranian actress and screenwriter. She is best known for her role as Homa Saadat in ''Capital'' (2011–2021). She has received various accolades, including a Hafez Award ...

as Azam

Release

Acclaimed film producer

Abbas Kiarostami Abbas Kiarostami ( fa, عباس کیارستمی ; 22 June 1940 – 4 July 2016) was an Iranian film director, screenwriter, poet, photographer, and film producer. An active filmmaker from 1970, Kiarostami had been involved in the production of ...

designed one of the posters that was used to promote ''A Cube of Sugar''.

Awards and accolades

* Iran Cinema Celebration: **Won: Best Poster **Nominated: Best Film (

Reza Mirkarimi Reza Mirkarimi ( fa, رضا میرکریمی; born 27 January 1967) is an Iranian screenwriter and film director. He was also Secretary of the International Film Festival of the Fajr Film Festival. Career He graduated from Fine Arts University ...

), Best Director (Mirkarimi), Best Actor (

) * Fajr Film Festival 2011: Best Costume Design (nominated) * Fajr Film Festival 2011: Best Soundboard (Bahman Ardalan, nominated) * Fajr Film Festival 2011: Best Actress (

, nominated)

References

External links