Roya Sadat

Source: Asian Project Market

Roya Sadat

Afghan-Canadian actress Mozhdah Jamalzadah is to star in Roya Sadat’s Sima’s Song, which is set to be showcased at the Asian Project Market (APM) in Busan.

The dramatic thriller is a Spain-Netherlands-France co-production and is set to begin production in Greece in six weeks. It marks the second feature from Sadat, Afghanistan’s leading female director, whose drama A Letter To The President was her country’s submission to the Oscars in 2018.

Set in Kabul, Sima’s Song will follow two friends on opposite ends of the social and political spectrum who are swept up in a revolution. Jamalzadah, who is also a singer and talk show host, will play one of the friends – Suraya – and is joined by Afghan actress Leen Alam (Black Kite) and Iranian actress Niloufar Koukhani.

Written by Sadat and Aziz Deildar, the film is produced by Alba Sotorra (The Return: Life After ISIS), Frank Hoeve and Maeva Savinien. It is budgeted at $1.78m with $1.52m already in place.

“I think we have a great story to tell, because it is the first film from Afghanistan by a female Afghan director about special friendship about two women,” said Sotorra.

The production is in Greece working with local company Homemade Films to access the country’s 40% cash rebate on location shoots.

“We decided to shoot in Greece because we found incredible locations to recreate Kabul in 1979, both for the exteriors and the interiors,” said Sotorra. “Architecturally, Athens has many buildings from the 1970s and some are strikingly similar to those in Kabul, such as the university.

“Roya Sadat, our director, has been exiled in the United States for more than a year and when she arrived in Greece she was amazed and said she felt at home: the landscapes, the alleys, the people, everything reminded her of home. Another reason to come to Greece is that there is a large Afghan population here, which is essential for finding the cast of the film. Finally, the cash rebate was also an important reason that encouraged us to come and shoot here.”

Sotorra said there are plans to shoot for a few days in Afghanistan, with hopes to finish the production this year. Editing is due to begin in March 2023.

APM runs October 9-11 during the Asian Contents & Film Market (ACFM), which starts today (October 8).