'I am them and they are me': the transnational body as collective in Iranian women's cinema

Khosroshahi, Z. (2023) 'I am them and they are me': the transnational body as collective in Iranian women's cinema. Transnational Screens, 14(2), pp. 89-102. (doi: 10.1080/25785273.2023.2231776)

Abstract

Women’s bodies have often been used as metonymic, standing for the nation and its ideologies. In exploring both narrative and documentary style filmmaking, I turn to two films: Gilaneh (2006) by Rakhshan Banietemad and A Moon for My Father (2019) co-directed by Mania Akbari and Douglas White. In Gilaneh, Banietemad codifies the maternal to symbolise the nation, but only to subvert and critique the state’s neglect of the forgotten mother. By imagining war beyond the borders of Iran, Banietemad also imagines the mother figure across the nation, giving her international significance. In A Moon for My Father Akbari features her own body and battle with breast cancer. Even in the film’s most intimate moments, Akabri reflects on and connects herself to the women’s movement in Iran. In their conceptualisation of women’s bodies, I argue that both Banietemad and Akbari extend the singular body beyond its national boundaries, calling for and insisting upon an intersectional and collective feminism.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Khosroshahi, Dr Zahra
• Authors: Khosroshahi, Z.
• College/School: College of Arts & Humanities > School of Culture and Creative Arts > Theatre Film and TV Studies
• Journal Name: Transnational Screens
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis
• ISSN: 2578-5273
• ISSN (Online): 2578-5265
• Published Online: 17 July 2023
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © The Author(s) 2023
• First Published: First published in Transnational Screens 14(2):89-102
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons licence