Radio Dreams is a 2016 American film by Iranian-born film director Babak Jalali.[3] Inspired by a group of real life Iranian Metallica fans, calling themselves the Persian Magnetic,[3] and the realities of expatriate life of the Iranian diaspora in the United States.[4]
| Radio Dreams | |
|---|---|
 Radio Dreams promotional poster | |
| رویاهای رادیویی | |
| Directed by | Babak Jalali[1] |
| Written by | Babak Jalali, Aida Ahadiany[1] |
| Produced by | Marjaneh Moghimi[1] |
| Cinematography | Noaz Deshe[1] |
Production company | Butimar[1] |
| Distributed by | Reel Suspects[1] |
Release date |
|
Running time | 91 minutes |
| Countries | United States Iran |
| Languages | English, Persian |
| Budget | US$ 300,000[2] |
The film Radio Dreams won the 2016 Tiger Award at the International Film Festival Rotterdam,[3] and Jalali[2] won the Best Director Award at Andrey Tarkovsky Film Festival in Russia. In 2016 the film was shown at the 32nd Warsaw Film Festival in the "Discoveries" section.[5]
Plot
Hamid Royani is the station manager at Pars-FM Radio, the Bay Area's premiere Persian language radio station.[4] As everyone at Pars-FM looks forward to a continuously delayed jam session by Afghan rock band Kabul Dreams with metal legends Metallica, Royani despairs. As a respected man of the arts in his homeland, he must struggle against the commercial demands of the station's owners; erudite and eloquent in his own tongue, he must face the ups and downs of everyday life in a land where he can hardly speak the language.
Cast
- Mohsen Namjoo as Hamid Royani[4]
- Lars Ulrich as himself[6][4]
- Boshra Dastournezhad as Maral Afshar[7]
- Kabul Dreams (Sulyman Qardash, Siddique Ahmed, Raby Adib) as themselves[6][8]
- Bella Warda as Sherbet[9]
- Mohammad Talani as Reza Gerami
- Babak Mortazavi as Jamshid
- Mahmood Schricker as Morad
- Keyumars Hakim as Sohrab Afshar
- Leila Shahrestani as Leila Shahrestani
- Ali Tahbaz as Yashar
- Mansur Taeed as Dr. Jim Rakhshandeh
- Larry Laverty as TV reporter
- Kyle Kernan as wrestling coach
- Casimir Carothers as little drumming boy
- Fat Dog as guitar salesman
- Litz Plummer as opera singer
Production
Marjaneh Moghimi, a producer of community documentaries, was looking to produce her first fictional feature and approached Babak Jalali to helm it.[2] A personal friend of Mohsen Namjoo, Moghimi introduced him to Jalali;[2] at the same time Kabul Dreams had just decided to relocate to the United States, and around these cast members the story was written. With a minimal budget of US$300,000, a virtue was made of necessity and the story that developed staged the action within the span of a day within the confines of a radio station.[2] This setting in turn was to play a part in the lighting and camera setups used by cinematographer Noaz Deshe.[1] The design of the film poster was made by design agency, Ceft and Company New York.[10]
Reception
Neil Young of The Hollywood Reporter described the film as, "presenting a nuanced, intelligent and consistently droll take on hot-button subjects of immigration, identity and cultural assimilation..." and that it "stand[s] comparison with the finest radio-themed enterprises of the current century..."[1]
Writing in Variety, critic Catherine Bray called the film a "quietly satisfying gem..." and a "deserving Tiger competition winner at Rotterdam..."[11]
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Result | Recipient | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | International Film Festival Rotterdam | Tiger Award | Won | Radio Dreams | [3][11][6] |
| 2016 | Seattle International Film Festival | Special Jury Mention | Won | Radio Dreams | [12] |
| 2016 | Durban International Film Festival | Best Actor: Mohsen Namjoo | Won | Radio Dreams | [13][9] |
| 2016 | Andrey Tarkovsky International Film Festival | Best Director | Won | Radio Dreams | [13] |
| 2016 | International Film Festival Rotterdam | Best Film | Won | Radio Dreams | [13] |
See also
References
External links
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