The Day I Became a Woman

Focus on Iranian Filmmakers

Three allegorical stories about three women in Iran. The first part focuses on a young girl who is told, on her ninth birthday, she can no longer play with boys whom she played with till yesterday because she is now a "woman". In the second chapter a young woman decides to enter a bicycle race against her husband's wishes. As increasing numbers of men from the village join her husband and ride beside her to convince her to return home, the race begins to symbolize a freedom she is yearning for. The last part follows an old woman who has come into some money and is now free to do what she wants. Director Marzieh Meshkini tries to draw a portrait of the Iranian woman from childhood to old-age and society which stands in her way to basic freedom.

Dr. Tirza Kugler's article about women filmmakers in Iranian cinema

Screenplay: Marziyeh Meshkini, Mohsen Makhmalbaf
Cast: Fatemeh Cherag Akhar, Shabnam Toloui, Azizeh Sedighi
Cinematography: Mohamad Ahmadi, Ebrahim Ghafori
Editing: Maysam Makhmalbaf, Shahrzad Pouya
Production: Mohsen Makhmalbaf
Festivals: Venice, Toronto, Thessaloniki
Source: Wild Bunch, France