The Cinematheque

Vancouver Premiere

“Sharifi shows how the very act of filming becomes an act of resistance … If her film brings home the horror of regime oppression, it also celebrates the many moments of joy that refuse to be thwarted.”

Amber Wilkinson, Screen International

Farahnaz Sharifi was born on March 8, 1979, the day Iranian women protested the imposition of compulsory veiling following the Islamic revolution. That date, marking both her birth and a moment of defiance, becomes the axis of My Stolen Planet, a personal documentary that intertwines one woman’s life with more than four decades of women’s resistance in post-revolutionary Iran. Through an intimate collage of home videos and found footage, Sharifi contrasts two worlds: the private spaces where women laugh, dance, and live freely; and the public realm where the hijab is enforced and women’s rights are ignored. Moving between memory and history, the film captures the rhythm of survival—the courage of women consistently breaking the rules and creating islands of joy and freedom in a constrained society.

Post-screening audience discussion moderated by PELAN.

Best International Documentary, FIPRESCI Award
Thessaloniki International Documentary Festival 2024