The Cinema of Rakhshan Bani-Etemad

Asal Bagheri:
The blue veiled: How to unveil taboos between women and men

Abstract: The paper will attempt a semiological analysis of The blue veiled (1994), a film by Rakhshan Bani-Etemad. Starting hypothesis will consist of showing how the director managed to avoid censorship and taboos while describing love and/or family relations. The methodology adopted is a semiological model proposed by Anne-Marie Houdebine named "indices semiology". This semiotic is based on flexible structuring and indefinite Objects. The analysis is a two-step approach: the first one is a "systemic analysis" which consists of looking for a structure. To be descriptive rather than prescriptive, one has to study all possibilities within the corpus and identify "convergences" (major usage), "divergences" (different usage) and "peripherals" (very minor usage) before creating a model of the studied Object. This means isolating all the sequences that involve any kind of relation between a woman and a man. Having done so, I will compare them to determine what are the similarities and the differences in order to get a relevant corpus. The second step consists of analyzing the content. This part concentrates on meanings, effects and significations processes. The interpretation of the corpus elements is done at the internal level of the Object and also at the external level when cultural, social, encyclopedical references are mobilized to analyze meaning. I intend to interpret the categories found in the earlier systemic analysis. The objective is to observe what is hidden behind these cinematographic methods, the real meaning revealing mother's love, forbidden love, sexual relation, etc. Having demonstrated that in this film there is a code and a hidden language between the director and her public, it will reveal the methods used by the director in relation to what can not be shown in the post-revolutionary 'Islamic cinema'.

Biography: Asal Bagheri is a PhD student in language sciences, general semiology at Sorbonne University where she is completing a thesis entitled "strategies used in Iranian film after the Islamic Revolution; taboos and implicit relationships between women and men". She has also participated in research on the cinema of Rakhshan Bani-Etemad for a book which will soon be published by Alain Brunet in 2008.

Alain Brunet:
'The Mother' in Bani-Etemad's cinema

Abstract: Focusing on the mother's importance in Rakhshan Bani-Etemad's cinema, Alain Brunet will demonstrate what is unique about their characterisation in her work. To do so he will contrast her films to those of other Iranian filmmakers including Masoud Kimia'i's Qeysar. He mainly focuses on The May lady, Under the skin of the city, Gilaneh, and Mainline. He will also discuss mothers in Rakhshan Bani-Etemad's documentaries including Last Meeting with 'Iran Daftari'.

Biography: Alain Brunet is a French filmmaker who has directed a number of feature films in France which include Du ble en liasses (1966) and Le Solitaire (1973). He has made a large number of documentaries in France, the USA also 30 in Iran. He has also directed plays and written film scripts. He is currently writing a book on Rakhshan Bani-Etemad's cinema which will be published by the end of 2008.

Taraneh Dadar:
Unveiled spectators: A discussion of spectatorship in the cinema of Rakhshan Bani-Etemad

Abstract: The paper attempts to conduct a reading of selected films by Rakhshan Bani Etemad to see how spectator positions are constructed through the narrative discourse of her films. While spectatorship theory started off with the idea that spectator positions were exclusively male constructs, developments in feminist film theory vigorously explored aspects of female spectatorship. In later stages of the discussion, a certain fluidity and heterogeneity was suggested in the positioning, allowing for multiple spectator positions within films. The paper proposes to situate Bani-Etemad's work within the wider discussion of spectatorship in Iranian cinema. As a filmmaker with a strong commitment to the women's issue, Bani Etemad's style is partly characterized by playing with taboos in her representations of women. While the presence and movements of female characters on screen are strictly regulated by the Islamic codes of modesty, how does she reconcile the tension between the post-revolutionary problematic of female representation and the spectatorial gaze in her films? How do the politics of gaze change once female presence on screen becomes veiled? And how does this change translate into the creation of multiple spectator positions in her cinema? He will be looking at three films in the mid to later stages of Bani Etemad's filmmaking career, to study the manner in which multiple spectator positions can be created in the reception of her films. The films to be discussed are Mainline (2006), Gilaneh (2005) and The May Lady (1998). These have been selected as they achieve a careful examination of the Iranian female subject, negotiating her identity in the patriarchal discourse of a society in transition. Addressing the "lived experiences" of women across different classes, the films demonstrate an acknowledgement of spectatorial agency, opening up theoretical space for discussions of spectatorship.

Biography: Having completed her undergraduate studies in Iran, Taraneh Dadar moved to India in 2004 and did an MA in Cultural Studies in Hyderabad. In 2006 she began working at Press TV in Iran as a news writer. Shortly afterwards, she joined the Tehran office of United Nation's High Commissioner for Refugees to work with Iraqi refugees in Iran. She started her PhD in the school of Media, Communications and Sociology at Queen Margaret University in October 2007. Her dissertation is about the construction of female identity in post- revolutionary Iranian cinema.

Maryam Ghorbankarimi:
Gender balance on the screen: Rakhshan Bani-Etemad's films since the 1990s

Abstract: Rakhshan Bani-Etemad, one of the most celebrated filmmakers in Iran, has established a form of gender equality among women and men on the screen. In contrast, female characters in many other Iranian films, especially in the films prior to the 1990s, are usually either idealized characters or portrayed as passive figures in the background. Although the protagonists in Bani-Etemad's films are usually women, her films are not one-sided portrayal of Iran. She does not take revenge for decades of faceless women in Iranian cinema by de-personifying her male characters, as has been done by more radically feminist filmmakers; nor does she believe in isolating her work so that it can only belong to one section of society. Instead, she addresses issues that could concern most Iranians. She does not limit herself to her vision of the world as a woman in her filmmaking and goes past personal experiences. She sculpts her characters, either women or men, in full three dimensions. Her characters are conceived as real, as if made out of flesh and blood; they are not just flat impressions. Her films portray social problems, and her background in documentary filmmaking lends them a documentary style, helping to bring the spectator closer to the subjects. Looking at her film career, one can see a definite progress in the fluidity of the cinematic language. Focusing on her works since the 1990s, all of which were both written and directed by her, this paper will analyze and compare Bani-Etemad's approach to each subject and her portrayal of the main characters, both men and women.

Biography: Maryam Ghorbankarimi is currently completing a PhD in film studies at the University of Edinburgh in the UK and her research focus is women in Iranian Cinema. Maryam is also a filmmaker and has made a number of short films, both fiction and documentary, which have been shown at festivals such as Montreal International Film Festival, Beijing International Short Film Festival, and Tehran International Short Film Festival. Her research interests include women, gender, and cinema, and in general the cinema of developing countries.

Chris Gow:
Self-Reflexivity in Rakhshan Bani-Etemad's The May Lady

Abstract: One of the defining characteristics of post-revolutionary Iranian cinema is its self-reflexivity and intertextuality. Many of the works of some of its most famous filmmakers consistently and explicitly reference the works of their contemporaries, as well as their own previous works. Rakhshan Bani-Etemand is a filmmaker whose body of work fits very strongly into this overall trend. With particular reference to The May Lady, this paper therefore examines the self-reflexivity of Bani-Etemad's cinema, comparing it with the self-reflexivity of other Iranian filmmakers, identifying how and to what extent it emerges as a distinctive feature of Bani-Etemad's own filmmaking style, at the same time as it situates her within the wider cinematic movement that has been dubbed the New Iranian Cinema.

Biography: Christopher Gow recently graduated from University of Warwick (UK) with a PhD in Film & Television Studies. His thesis focused on the New Iranian Cinema as 'art' cinema, as well as �migr� Iranian filmmaking, and the parallels between both. He recently helped to convene a short season of Iranian films at the Dukes cinema in Lancaster.

Laura Mulvey:
Bani-Etemad's cinema: Final thoughts

Abstract: Laura Mulvey will reflect upon the papers presented throughout the day highlighting Bani-Etemad's significance in world cinema.

Biography: Laura Mulvey is one of the most prominent British film theorists and an influential filmmaker. Her essay 'Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema', written in 1973, is not only the first major essay that helped shift the orientation of film theory towards a psychoanalytic framework but is the most important work in feminist film theory. Mulvey has also co-written and made a number of avant-garde films that include Penthesilea: Queen of the amazons (1974), Riddles of the Sphinx (1977), Amy! (1980), Crystal gazing (1982), Frida Kahlo and Tina Modotti (1982), and Disgraced monuments (1996). She is currently Professor of film and media studies at Birkbeck, University of London. She worked at the British Film Institute for many years before taking up her current position.

Hamid Reza Sadr:
Nargess: The sexual dynamism of love triangle

Biography: Hamid Reza Sadr is an Iranian film critic. He is well known in Iran for his columns in Film Monthly and Haft magazines. Sadr's film reviews have been published in many Iranian journals since 1981. He has also translated into Persian From Reverence to Rape: The Treatment of Women in the Movies, an influential book by Molly Haskell. He has written a book on politics and Iranian cinema, entitled Iranian Cinema: A Political History. The comprehensive analysis provided in this book gives refreshing, up-to-date introduction to those interested in Iranian cinema and its socio-political dimensions and history, observing recurrent themes and genres as well as shedding light on less known thematic concerns and figures. Sadr, while acknowledging the lack of imaginative expression in mainstream Iranian cinema: the weak scripts, the repetitive and conservative nature and content and poor performances, argues for and analyses the political context as well as the constant shifts embedded within the least noteworthy of Iranian films. Sadr's books and book chapters included: Comedy Cinema (Tehran, 1987,Film Publication), An Introduction to the Political History of Iranian Cinema (Tehran, 2001, Ney Publications), Against the Wind: Politics of Iranian Cinema (Tehran, 2002, Zarrin Publications), Iranian Cinema: A Political History (London, 2006, I.B.Tauris), Once Upon a Time Football (Tehran, 2000, Avige Publication) which is a personal review of football based on political and social events. A chapter in Life and Art : The New Iranian Cinema (BFI,1999,London), A chapter in The New Iranian Cinema: Politics, Representation & Identity (London, 2002, I.B.Tauris)

Naghmeh Samini:
A spinning coin: The opposition between violence and dialogue in Rakhshan Bani-Etemad's films

Abstract: Following the end of the war between Iran and Iraq in 1988, the question of violence and dialogue as two different manners of communication between opponents became one of the most significant topics in contemporary Iranian discourses in political, social and cultural spheres. Fight or flight were the main elements of violent discourse in contrast to dialogue which entailed interaction, understanding and ultimately reaching synthesis. In the last two decades, these topics have been prevalent in nearly all cultural productions, most especially in cinema. Since Banietemad's films are closely related to social issues, an analysis of her films with the aforementioned focus is important, timely and inevitable. From Narges to Mainline, the relationship between violence and dialogue varies from film to film. In Narges two opponents finally start to speak. In The blue veiled there is possibility of dialogue between people from different social classes, in which facing tradition leads to a tragic ending. The May lady is basically a film about dialogue but the question is whether the main character is capable of changing the violence prevalent both in her private and social lives. In Under the skin of the city the members of a family want to create dialogue with the city in a general sense; but is that possible? In Mainline the characters never find any opportunity to speak with one another.

Focusing on individual case studies, the paper analyses the interactive relationship between dialogue and violence in Banietemad's films and at the same time seeks answers to the following questions: How is the period in which each movie is made significant to the way Bani-Etemad deals with the subject at hand? How important is this issue in terms of the structure of the film? What role do the female characters play in these opposing depictions of violence and dialogue?

Biography: Naghemeh Samini has done her PhD in art studies in Tehran. She currently a lecturer in dramatic arts at the University of Tehran. She also regularly writes film reviews for numerous Iranian journals. Since 1999, she has written and directed a number of award winning plays in Iran including Poet and death and The spell of the burnt temple. She has published many of her play scripts which include: Puppet plays (2006), The spell of the burnt temple (2002), The book of love and magic (2001) and Testament (1999). She has received numerous awards that include: best playwright at Fajr International Theatre Festival for Grimace (Tehran , 2005), UNESCO Aschberg fellowship (India , 2003) and best playwright at Fajr International Theatre Festival for Dream in an Empty Cup (2003). In 2007 she was the joint winner of the award for the best screenplay at Fajr International Film Festival for Bani-Etemad's Mainline.

Roxanne Varzi:
Motherhood, Sacrifice and the aftermath of war in Bani-Etemad's Gilaneh

Abstract: The Iran-Iraq war, which took place from 1981 to 1989, was one of the longest and bloodiest conventional wars in the history of the last century. The war was also the largest mobilization of the Iranian population and was achieved primarily by producing and promoting a culture of martyrdom based on religious themes found in Shii Islam. It was the war that created and consolidated what we know today as the Islamic Republic of Iran. For years there have been two popular public discourses in post-war Iran: the secular discourse, which is to evade, ignore and escape to the Caspian, and then the state's discourse, of the strong mourning women and the heroic martyrs. It is the group of women who exist betwixt the dominant discourses of the secular versus the religious and the idea of womanhood versus motherhood that I am interested in exploring here by looking at the most recent work of a secular female filmmaker, Rakhshan Bani-Etemad.

The paper begins with Bani-Etemad's meditation on meaning in post-war Iran in 1998 in a film that had nothing to do with the war per se but with the quest of a single mother to negotiate womanhood with motherhood. This is a universal struggle for many women around the world, but one that is even more difficult to negotiate in a religious state. In The May Lady, Bani-Etemad focused her lens on a fictional urban northern Tehran woman, eight years post-war, before moving her camera to the Caspian and meditating on the meaning of war for woman like Gilaneh. The paper looks not only at these two films, but ways in which Bani-Etemad is a master of blending fiction and documentary to eleicit modern day Iran.

Biography: Roxanne Varzi was awarded the first Fulbright fellowship after the Revolution for research in Iran (2000). She has a PhD in anthropology from Columbia University and has taught at New York University, the University of London (School of Oriental and African Studies) and was a senior visiting Fellow at St Antony's College Oxford. She is currently an assistant professor of anthropology at the University of California Irvine and a fellow at the Institute for Advanced Studies and the Center for Culture and Literature in Berlin. She is the author of Warring Souls, Media, Martyrdom and Youth in post-Revolution Iran, Duke University Press, 2006. She has published widely on Iranian popular culture, the culture of the Iran-Iraq war and Iranian cinema. Her work has appeared in the London Review of Books, The New York Press, Eastern Art Report, American Anthropologist, Feminist Review and Public Culture Journal. She has also published short stories, one of which won the prestigious society for Humanism and Anthropology's 2007 Fiction Award. Her first ethnographic experimental film on mourning and martyrdom in Iran, Plastic Flowers Never Die, will be completed in 2008.

Tilly Walnes:
You just turn dumb in front of this camera: Reconfiguring melodramatic expression in Under the Skin of the City

Abstract: In his influential study 'Tales of sound and fury: observations on the family melodrama' (1972), Thomas Elsaesser argues that one of the defining characteristics of melodrama - epitomised by the films of Douglas Sirk - is that emotions which cannot be articulated verbally are displaced onto a highly stylised mise en sc�ne. This paper discusses how, despite its many affinities with melodramatic expression, Rakhshan Bani-Etemad's Under the Skin of the City (Zir-e poost-e shahr, 2001) significantly deviates from the Elsaesserian model. In this film, what is inhibited is not only the possibility of expression through dialogue, owing to the everyday existence of social pressures, but also the capacity for visual representation of emotion, due to censorship restrictions on cinematic production. This paper argues that it is through another constituent of cinematic meaning - sound (and in particular its non-verbal, diegetic elements) - that emotional expression is redirected. Thus Elsaesser's Hollywood-centred thesis fails to accommodate the cultural specificities of non-Western cinema. Moreover, at the same time as she references the film's working parameters under censorship, Bani-Etemad transcends these challenges through her art. The self-reflexive opening and final scenes of Under the Skin of the City, in which the protagonist addresses the camera directly, suggest a pessimistic conclusion: not only are the characters in the melodrama muted, but moreover, in post-revolutionary Iran, film itself is limited in its capacity to externalise subjective states.

Biography: Tilly Walnes recently completed an MA in History of Film and Visual Media at Birkbeck, University of London. She works at the Independent Cinema Office, which is the national support organisation for independent film exhibition in the UK.