Zar Amir Ebrahimi and Selina Zahednia star in Shayda, a heartfelt and powerful story about the unbreakable bond between a mother and daughter. Photo: Supplied.
A poignant love letter to mothers and daughters everywhere, Shayda is a heartfelt and powerful story about the indestructible bond between a mother and daughter.
Australia had selected award-winning Shayda, from Iranian-Australian debut writer and director Noora Niasari as its submission for Best International Feature Film at the 96th Academy Awards (won by The Zone of Interest, United Kingdom) on 10 March.
The drama, which counts Academy Award-winning Australian actor Cate Blanchett (The Aviator, Blue Jasmine) among its executive producers, world premiered in January at Sundance, where it won the World Cinema Audience Award.
The story follows a young Iranian mother, Shayda (played by Zar Amir Ebrahimi, Holy Spider), and her six-year-old daughter, Mona (Selina Zahednia), who find refuge in an Australian women’s shelter during the two weeks of Iranian New Year (Nowruz), which is celebrated as a time of renewal and rebirth. She has escaped her abusive husband in Iran and fled to safety in Melbourne.
Aided by the strong community of women at the shelter, they seek their freedom in this new world of possibilities, only to find themselves facing the violence they tried so hard to escape. Boarded in a women’s shelter run by the compassionate and protective Joyce (Leah Purcell), Shayda claws for steadiness and security, accompanied by the daily fear that her husband, Hossein (Osamah Sami), might find them.
It’s a critically acclaimed directorial debut from Tehran-born, Australia-raised Noora Niasari, who admits the first-time feature Oscar nomination was a surprise.
“Disbelief. Elation. Joy summed it up,” Noora said. “Rollercoaster of emotions. Been a cathartic and heartbreaking process. Writing, directing and producing. Navigating that blurry line between reality and fiction. Safe and beautiful process.”
It’s a personal story based on her own childhood, inspired by memories from the time spent living in a shelter with her Iranian mother, who escaped an abusive relationship, marked by a tense parental dynamic and persistent insecurity, but also an intense, steadfast motherly love.
Ebrahimi (who also fled Iran) and Zahednia have a wonderful chemistry as mother and daughter. Noora is a writer-director and co-founder of Parandeh Pictures, whose short films and documentaries have screened at film festivals worldwide.
Of the selection, Noora said: “I see this film as an open invitation for audiences to recognise and celebrate the courage and resilience of Iranian women, Australian women and all women fighting for freedom and independence from domestic violence. And so, to have Shayda represent Australia on the world stage with this submission gives me an immense sense of hope and pride.”
Australia only infrequently sends non-English-language films to the Academy Awards. With only one Australian nomination in the Foreign Language category in the past – Bentley Dean and Martin Butler’s Tanna in 2017 – and a steady stream of submissions in the category since 2012, this selection represents an exciting persistence in the diversification of Australian cinema.
A spokesperson for the Australian selection committee said: “There was no hesitation in putting forward Shayda as this year’s submission, which members of the committee described as ‘beautiful, timely, masterfully directed and a film that stays with you long after the closing credits’.”
The partners at Dirty Films Blanchett, Andrew Upton and Coco Francini, said: “Our hearts immediately connected to the story of Shayda. Its central theme of defining one’s own path is deeply rooted in the Australian psyche, but Noora Niasari has created art for a global audience.
“This is a powerful and resonant story of family that couldn’t be more timely, and we’re so proud that audiences are responding so enthusiastically as it embarks on an international journey.”
Shayda, directed by Noora Niasari, Madman Entertainment, own it on disc and digital
