How to Be a Woman: My Iranian Story
The extraordinary story of the battle for women’ s right in Iran
On the 23 rd September 2022, 16 year old Sarina Esmailzadeh was beaten to death by Iranian Security Forces for daring to raise her voice for Women’ s Rights. Award-winning director Mahnaz Mohammadi has spent her life filming women fighting repression in Iran, but has never before seen bravery as demonstrated by Sarina and her generation, women willing to sacrifice everything for their voices to be heard.
In this feature documentary, Mahnaz will address Sarina and this younger generation who have astounded her with their fearlessness. She wants to show them what life was like before, the darkness and brutality her and her peers endured, and how together they can bring back colour to their lives and Iranian society.
With unparalleled exclusive access to over 900 hours of archive, beautifully shot by Mahnaz over 20 years, How to Be a Woman: My Iranian Story will be the definitive account of the women’ s movement in Iran as it reaches its zenith.
Duration 1 x 1½ hr
Produced by Basement Films for Channel 4, UK, in association with All3Media International