an astronomy club for young people and trying to build an observatory . “ I stayed many days in Mr . Kabiri ’ s house and one night Sepideh and a small group of friends came to his house on their way going stargazing . I followed them and observed how ambitious Sepideh seemed to be , carrying around her small telescope to get the right spots to observe the sky .” Madsen said . “ I was really curious to know how it was possible for her — at this point only 14 years old — to leave her house in these late hours to go out in the freezing night and what she was up to . Even though I knew Iran before coming to Saadat Shahr for the first time and know that it ’ s a much more complex country than it is most often portrayed in the global media , this is really not what you expect a young Iranian girl to do .” The following day , Madsen visited Sepideh and her family at their home . Posters of Albert Einstein adorned the walls of Sepideh ’ s room , and she spoke of a promise she had made to her late father about becoming an astronomer . “ Upon getting these first insights into her dreams and background , I knew that I wanted to make a film about her ,” she said . “ I wanted to follow her to see how she would make these huge dreams come true ; what would happen when her childhood dreams met reality .” When viewers of Madsen ’ s film first meet Sepideh , we hear her sure footsteps crunching through the rocks
COURTESY OF Berit Madsen
Documentarian Berit Madsen poses with Sepideh Hooshyar at the Fajr Film Festival in 2014 . The film had its Iranian premiere during the event .
COURTESY OF Mohammad Reza Jahan Panah
In a still from the documentary , Sepideh Hooshyar visits with Asghar Kabiri , a physics teacher who leads the local astronomy club . as she trudges up a hillside grasping her precious telescope tightly to her heart . This image is a perfect introduction to the challenges that lie ahead and the determination she has to meet them . Madsen herself faced uncertainties while making the film . “ It ’ s a challenge to make a
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