The Cinematheque

Vancouver Premiere

“Infused with radiant grandmotherly energy, Singing Wings intimately observes a life of dedication, in which love persists and compassion soars.”

Hyun Jin Cho, BFI London Film Festival 2025

Singing Wings is a poetic and deeply human documentary set in a picturesque Kurdish village in Iran, where migrating storks arrive each winter. At its center is Khadijeh, a 78-year-old woman whose life revolves around caring for others, including her ailing husband. Her routine changes when she finds a stork injured by high-voltage power lines and left behind by its flock. Determined to help the bird recover and return to the sky, Khadijeh devotes herself to nursing it back to health. Her efforts create a tender parallel with another concern close to her heart: her daughter’s wish to immigrate to the United Kingdom. As Khadijeh prepares the stork for its departure, she struggles with the possibility that her own child will leave home. Told with warmth, humour, and quiet observation, Singing Wings unfolds like a gentle fable, capturing the resilience, optimism, and everyday poetry of rural life.

In Kurdish with English subtitles

Post-screening audience discussion moderated by Pelan.