Jalali was born in iran and grew up in london, and attended the london film school career directing. Radio dreams delivers interesting programming kpbs. The pace of life as chronicled in babak jalali s meandering film is so lethargic it feels in danger of going backwards. Babak jalali s frontier blues is a fragmented and very knowing portrait of life in irans northern frontier with turkmenistan. With his production company asmara films he has produced, among others, frontier blues 2009 and land 2018 by iranian director babak jalali. But i still feel that after a disappointing few years, directors like babak jalali could well be about to give films from that region a much needed lift. Radio dreams creates the strange yet very real world of parsfm a farsilanguage radio station broadcasting from the heart of san francisco.
In this debut feature written and directed by iranian born babak jalali, frontier blues features 4 intertwined stories all set in irans northern frontier with turkmenistan, a region that has long been neglected in iranian cinema, interesting not only for its magnificent, forlorn landscape but. Abolfazl karimi as hassan in babak jalalis frontier blues. You wait a lifetime for one and then two come along. Jalalis first feature film, the 2010 frontier blues, was developed with support from the cannes. Babak jalali s frontier blues will test the patience of audiences waiting for anything significant or. Directed by babak jalali, the film features a cast that includes khajeh araz dordi, mahmoud kalteh, abolfazl karimi and behzad shahrivari.
In 2009 he made his first feature film, frontier blues, which won the fipresci prize for best film at the san francisco international. He studied balkan and east european studies as well as politics at university college london and then attended london film school. Babak jalali 1978, iran moved to london at a young age. After earning his bachelors and masters degrees, he was accepted at the london film school. In this debut feature written and directed by iranian born. Hassan, a persian with cokebottle glasses, whose only pal is his everpresent donkey, collects license plates and listens to a francoise hardy song over and over. Londonbased iranian director babak jalalis frontier blues is set in an almost. With khajeh araz dordi, mahmoud kalteh, abolfazl karimi, karima mcadams. In this debut feature written and directed by iranian born babak jalali, frontier blues features 4 intertwined stories all set in irans northern frontier with turkmenistan, a region that. First time director babak jalali s debut is hopeful but soon falls short by lacking debt and. Londonbased iranian director babak jalali s frontier blues is set in an almost stilllifelike frontier village where nothing much happens. Babak jalali celebrity profile check out the latest babak jalali photo gallery, biography, pics, pictures, interviews, news, forums and blogs at rotten tomatoes. In this debut feature written and directed by iranian born babak jalali, frontier blues features four, intertwined stories all set in irans northern frontier with turkmenistan, a region that has long been neglected in iranian cinema, interesting not only for its magnificent, forlorn landscape but also for its multiethnic population of persians. Babak jalali was born in 1978 in northern iran and has been based in london since 1986.
Director babak jalali exhibits assured command in crafting his portrait of four citizens of the northern iranian province of golestan, interconnecting the stories of his protagonists in ways that never feel contrived or excessively strain to underline their significance. Overview of frontier blues, 2009, directed by babak jalali, with karima adebibe, mahmoud kalteh, hossein shams, at turner classic movies. Babak jalali is an iranian film director and producer, notably directing radio dreams, for which. The story unfolds over a single day as the stations program manager, hamid a. On irans northern frontier with turkmenistan, the land of heartbreak and tractors, firsttime director babak jalali mines absurdist humour and quiet pathos from the immutable routines of a stranded group of men. Babak jalalis debut feature frontier blues opens in. Heres an exclusive look at radio dreams, the newest feature from iranianbritish director babak jalali frontier blues, in theaters in may. Abolfazl karimi as hassan in babak jalalis frontier. Frontier blues 2009 four intertwined stories all set in irans northern frontier with turkmenistan. Inspired by filmmakers such as finnish director aki kaurismaki it captures the slowpaced world of a remote iranian border town through static shots and deadpan humour. Debut feature film written and directed by babak jalali. Frontier blues 2009 films released 2000 2019 films. Through long, static shots and slowpacing, jalali details the lives of four interconnected characters.
Comedy set in the golestan province of iran, on the border with turkmenistan, and revolving around four characters. Jalali s other notable credit is as coproducer on noaz deshes incendiary debut white shadow 20 the multitalented israeli provided the score for frontier blues, and here proves that his. W hatever isnt conveyed about frontier blues by its title is dealt with in the films 30 minutes. Video 3min 00sec, four men in a border province of northern iran dream of a better future. After receiving a ba degree in east european studies and an ma degree in politics from the university of london, he went to london film school where he graduated with an ma in filmmaking in 2005. Frontier blues, premiered at the locarno international film festival in. Frontier blues frontier blues frontier blues features 4 intertwined stories all set in irans northern frontier with turkmenistan, a region that has long been neglected in iranian cinema, interesting not only for its magnificent, forlorn landscape but also for its multiethnic population of persians, turkmens and kazakhs. Developed during his cannes film festival cinefondation residency, babak jalali s droll and empathetic first feature follows a quartet of characters who live in the frontier territories of his own. On irans northern frontier with turkmenistan, the land of heartbreak and tractors, jalali mines absurdist humour and quiet pathos from the immutable routines of a group of men.
Babak jalali, 12a 95min what is it with minutely observed dramas about the realities of life on the steppes. The movie is of note for being the second by iranianbritish writerdirector babak jalali, whose 2009 debut frontier blues is worth the hunt. An afghan in tehran 2005, was nominated for the bafta for best short film. In golestan, a rural northern province of iran, the londonbased iranian director babak jalali creates an endearing portrait of the turkmen people, an ethnic group who inhabit. Radio dreams, winner of the 45th rotterdam international film festivals tiger award, is the newest feature film from iranianbritish director babak jalali frontier blues. Film centers on the real, if semifunctioning world of. Born in iran in 1978, babak jalali has lived in london since 1986.
Frontier blues takes place in a remote part of northern iran where turkmen and persians live side by side. In the land of heartbreak and tractors, the northern frontier of iran, director babak jalali mines absurdist humor and quiet pathos from the immutable routines of a group of men. In 2009 he made his first feature film, frontier blues. Database of movie trailers, clips and other videos for frontier blues 2010. Frontier blues trailer 2010 a trailer for frontier blues which will play at the 2010 san francisco film festival. His debut feature film frontier blues premiered in competition at locarno and received multiple awards at international festivals. This film is about the lives lived on that region by a group of men waiting to go places. Frontier blues, the debut feature of 2005 lfs graduate babak jalali, opens at the renoir cinema today. In this debut feature written and directed by iranian born babak jalali, frontier blues features 4 intertwined stories all set in irans northern frontier with turkmenistan, a region that has long been neglected in iranian cinema, interesting not only for its magnificent, forlorn landscape but also for its multiethnic population of persians, turkmens and kazakhs. Alam works on a chicken farm but hopes to learn english, marry and move to the city. Frontier blues is a meditation on lifes circumstance, slow in pace and thoughtful but rich with vision, scope and sensibility to character, narrative and composition. Last night the film frontier blues by iranian director babak jalali, coproduced by ginevra elkann, was presented a glorious end for the new directors film festival, organised by the lincoln. Radio dreams creates a striking contrast with frontier blues. As a composer he is best known for the soundtrack to frontier blues 2009, the debut film by iranian director babak jalali.
The movie is of note for being the second by iranianbritish writerdirector babak jalali, whose 2009 debut frontier blues is worth the hunt, especially for fans of dry comedy and precise world cinema. On irans northern frontier with turkmenistan, the land of heartbreak and tractors, director babak jalali mines absurdist humour and quiet pathos from the immutable routines of a stranded group of men. In 2008 to 2009 i spent a year in iran making frontier blues, my first feature film, in my hometown, gorgan, which is up north, near. Abolfazl karimi, mahmoud kalteh, khajeh araz dordi, behzad shahrivari, karima adebibe, george hashemzadeh, hossein shams. Frontier blues 5 babak jalali was born in iran and brought up in london, yet his debut feature film frontier blues has a distinct scandinavian aesthetic. Abolfazl karimi as hassan in babak jalali s frontier blues. An interview with babak jalali, director of radio dreams. In 2006, jalali was nominated for the bafta award for best short film for his short heydar, an afghan in tehran. Radio dreams, the new film from babak jalali now playing at the digital gym, is an unexpectedly charming peek into life at radio pars, an iranianamerican radio.