''Winners'' (

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

: برنده‌ها) is a 2022 British Persian-language

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 ...

written and directed by

Hassan Nazer Hassan Nazer ( fa, حسن ناظر) is a British-Iranian film director, film editor, producer and a judge in international film festivals. He was the head of jury team in SAARC Film Festival 2019 which was held in Sri Lanka. Career Now in his ea ...

. The plot follows two children from a small Iranian community who discover the lost

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

statuette of

Asghar Farhadi Asghar Farhadi ( fa, اصغر فرهادی, ; born 7 May 1972)Soureh Movie Database

. It was selected as the British entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 95th Academy Awards, but was not nominated.

Synopsis

In a small provincial Iranian town, the children work hard to support their families. One day nine-year-old Yahya and his friend Leyla find a precious statue. Sharing a passion for cinema, Yahya's boss Naser Khan (Reza Naji) decides to help them find the

owner Ownership is the state or fact of legal possession and control over property, which may be any asset, tangible or intangible. Ownership can involve multiple rights, collectively referred to as title, which may be separated and held by different ...

Cast

The actors participating in this film are: * Parsa Maghami as Yahya * Helia Mohammadkhani as Leyla *

Hossein Abedini Hossein Abedini ( fa, حسین عابدینی) is an Iranian actor. His debut film was '' Pedar'' (Father), which was released in 1996 and directed by Majid Majidi. He received critical acclaim after portraying Lateef, a 17-year-old native Iranian ...

as Saber * Mahmoud Jafari as Driver * Shahrzad Kamalzadeh as Mrs. Sadeghi *

Reza Naji Reza Naji is an Iranian actor and an iconic figure of Iranian cinema. Naji started his career in theater when he was a teenager. While serving in the Iranian army, he continued to perform in different roles. His first role in a film goes back to ...

as Naser Khan * Ezzatollah Ramazanifar as Uncle Ezzat * Asghar Semsarzade as Antique Dealer * Martine Malalai Zikria as Mother

Production

Script

Hassan Nazer had the conceptual idea for the film from a very young age, but it wasn't until Trump's travel ban prevented eventual winner

Asghar Farhadi Asghar Farhadi ( fa, اصغر فرهادی, ; born 7 May 1972)Soureh Movie Database

from picking up his

Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film The Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (known as Best Foreign Language Film prior to 2020) is one of the Academy Awards handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to a ...

for '' The Salesman'' in February of 2017.

Filming

''Winners'' was financed, developed and post-produced in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

and shot on Iranian territory.

Release

The film had its world premiere at the Edinburgh International Film Festival in August 2022, where it won the Audience Award.

Reception

Critical reception

Deadline's Anna Smith wrote: "''Winners'', is an ode to cinema and the joys it brings, and it also pays tribute to the great achievements of Iranian filmmakers, dedicating the work to Abbas Kiarostami, Asghar Farhadi, Majid Maijdi and Jafar Panahi. But it also highlights the contrast between film festival plaudits and real life: what the cast and crew are left with once the party’s over." Screendaily's Fionnula Halligan wrote: "Ostensibly a film in the vein of ''Cinema Paradiso'' — which it references on several occasions — this is a curio for cineastes and festivalgoers, especially given the presence of Reza Naji in a lead role... Visually, ''Winners'' also harks back to the distinctive work of the Iranian New Wave; to Kiarostami and Makhmalbaf and everyone who came before. One thing is for sure: Nazer, and everyone in his film, loves Iranian cinema."

Accolades

References

External links

* {{British submissions for the Academy Award 2022 films 2022 drama films British drama films 2020s Persian-language films 2020s British films Films set in Iran Films shot in Iran Films about films Films about child labour Asghar Farhadi