Children often can garner a fear of the unknown in the world around them as they hear frightening stories and urban legends from their peers. While many kids subsequently learn to outgrow their terrors as they start to realize the myths are untrue, others will continue to be driven to learn more about the demons and how to escape them. Award-winning British-Iranian filmmaker Babak Anvari is one such person who decided to face his concerns in the story of his feature film writing and directorial debuts, the new horror thriller, ‘Under The Shadow.’ Having been born and raised in Tehran, Iran, the filmmaker often heard legends about Djinn, which are supernatural creatures that were introduced in early Arabian mythology and theology, from his peers. The stories caught his interest and convinced him to explore the myth in his first feature.
The drama, which premiered in the Midnight section of the Sundance Film Festival last Friday, January 22, was acquired by Vertical Entertainment and XYZ Films after it screened. The two companies have partnered for global release of the Farsi-language horror thriller. The distributors will coordinate a global day-and-date release on digital and VOD platforms, alongside a targeted theatrical release in select territories. Netflix will stream the film worldwide shortly after the theatrical and transactional debut. The release date has not yet been announced.
Set in 1988, ‘Under the Shadow’ follows Shideh (Narges Rashidi) and her family live amid the chaos of the Iran-Iraq war (known colloquially as The War of the Cities). Accused of sub-version by the post-Revolution government and blacklisted from medical college, she falls into a state of malaise.
Conscripted to the army, her husband is sent to the frontlines, leaving Shideh all alone to protect their young daughter, Dorsa (Avin Manshadi), all the while Tehran is under the constant threat of aerial bombardment. Not long after, a missile hits their apartment building and while failing to explode, a neighbor dies in mysterious circumstances. Following this event, Dorsa’s behavior becomes increasingly disturbed. Shideh is also slowly drawn into a mania, in which she struggles to cling onto what is real and what is not.
Searching for answers, Shideh learns from a superstitious neighbor that the cursed, unexploded missile might have brought with it Djinn. Convinced that a supernatural force within the building is attempting to possess Dorsa, Shideh finds she has no choice but to confront these forces if she is to save her daughter and herself.
Anvari generously took the time a few days after his horror thriller premiered at the Sundance Film Festival to talk about writing and directing ‘Under the Shadow’ during an exclusive interview over the phone. Among other things, the first-time feature filmmaker discussed how as the drama’s scribe and helmer, he knew he wanted to cast actors who could speak Farsi, in order to provide the story with an authenticity. Once the actors were cast, particularly Rashidi and Manshadi, he had a few days of rehearsal with them to help build their characters’ emotions and relationships. He also mentioned that he feels honored that his first feature was accepted into the Sundance Film Festival. He explained that from the moment he decided that he wanted to become a filmmaker as a child, he always dreamed that one day one of his movies would play at the festival.
ShockYa (SY): You made your feature film writing debut with the new horror thriller, ‘Under the Shadow,’ which takes place in Tehran during the Iran-Iraq War, and follows a mother and daughter as they’re torn apart by the bombing campaigns on the city and the country’s bloody revolution. What was your inspiration in penning the script, and what was the process of working as a first-time feature scribe?
Babak Anvari (BA): Well, I came up with the idea rather quickly, and then started writing a very long treatment. I wanted to nail the story down before I started writing the script. From there, I moved on to write the first and second drafts.
Once the script was in good shape, my agent sent it out, and we got the producers involved. I spent another year further developing and refining the script with the producers until it was good to go.
SY: Besides writing the screenplay, you also made your feature film directorial debut on the film. Was it always your intention to helm the movie as you were penning it? How did working on the script influence your directorial duties, especially as a first-time feature filmmaker?
BA: Well, to be honest with you, when I started working on the script, I thought I was only writing it so that I could direct it. I never intended to just write the script; I always wanted to also direct it myself.
SY: What was the casting process like for ‘Under the Shadow,’ particularly with Narges Rashidi, who plays the mother, Shideh, and Avin Manshadi, who portrays her young daughter, Dorsa?
BA: Basically, once the script was finished, I started looking for actors who could speak Farsi, because I wanted to film the movie in that language. I thought doing so would provide the movie with a real authenticity.
So we started looking around, and I met up with Narges Rashidi. We first spoke on Skype and over the phone, and I then met up with her in London. After meeting her, I knew that I wanted to cast her as my main lead.
Then for the rest of the characters, we started looking around the world for Farsi-speaking actors. They literally come from around the world, including the U.S., the U.K., France and Germany.
SY: Once the actors were cast in the horror thriller, were you able to have any rehearsals with them, particularly Narges and Avin, in order to build their characters’ mother-daughter relationship?
BA: Rehearsing was very important to me. But this was a low budget film, so we didn’t really have a lot of time to rehearse. So anytime I was able to, I would call the actors and talk to them about the characters.
With my lead actors, including those who played the husband, wife and little child, I had about two or three days before the shoot to really sit down and rehearse with them. When I say rehearse, we didn’t necessarily rehearse scenes; we instead talked about the characters and their backgrounds. We really went deep into their backgrounds, and I think that that ultimately helped a lot.
SY: Due to government restrictions regarding filmmaking in Iran, you decided to film ‘Under the Shadow’ in Jordan instead. What was your experience of filming the movie in Jordan? What was the process of finding the locations there where you wanted to shoot the film?
BA: It was a great experience, and I’m so happy with our choice to shoot in Jordan. At first, I was a bit worried, I had never been there before, so it was foreign territory for me. But once we arrived there, I realized it’s an incredible location. It reminded me a lot of Iran, especially in the ’80s, and it made me feel nostalgic.
The crew in Jordan is also very hardworking, so I had an amazing crew. A lot of Hollywood films shoot there, so the crew is all very experienced. So I had a very good time there. We only had 21 days to shoot, so the process was very intense. But I had a great crew to support me and power through it.
SY: What was the process of working with the horror thriller’s production designer, Nasser Zoubi, to create the accuracy of the film’s look and feel during the difficult political time in Iran’s history?
BA: Even before I decide that Nasser would be the film’s production designer, I did a lot of my own research. I gathered a lot of photos of 1980s Iran. Then when I met with Nasser, we went through the photos together. It was incredible, because he’s from Jordan, so he added some Middle Eastern touches. So that helped make the locations feel very real and authentic. We worked very closely together, as well as with the film’s DP (Director of Photography), Kit Fraser, to create the look of the film.
SY: Speaking of the film’s DP, Kit Fraser, he shot ‘Under the Shadow’ in a unique way, as it forgoed the usual shaky cam method that’s typically utilized in horror films for more of a sway cam. What was your collaboration process like with to create the overall look of the movie?
BA: Camera movement and lighting are always extremely important, because film is a visual medium. I’m lucky because Kit is also a very close friend of mine. I’ve known him for over 13 years, and we went to film school together.
Kit was the very first person who knew about my idea for ‘Under the Shadow,’ because I told him about it when it was just a bunch of ideas in my head. From that moment, we started talking about the look of the film. As I was writing and developing the script, I was also chatting with Kit about how we should approach the look and camera work.
So by the time we were ready to shoot, we knew exactly what we wanted. The two of us spent three weeks at the locations, blocking scenes with the camera. We also came up with ideas on how to shoot the film.
We also discussed what type of lighting we should use. The film has a very natural look to it, especially at the beginning. But then as everything begins to unravel around the characters, we purposefully had everything begin to shift and change.
SY: The horror film had its world premiere on Friday, January 22, at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. What has the experience of bringing the movie to the festival been like, and how have audiences responded to it?
BA: It was incredible, and I’m still buzzing. From the moment I decided that I wanted to become a filmmaker as a child, my dream was always to one day make it to Sundance. It’s such an honor to have been accepted into the festival, and I’m lucky that my first feature premiered at the festival.
SY: Netflix acquired the worldwide streaming rights for ‘Under the Shadow’ on the first day of the festival in Park City. How did the acquisition happen, and do you think the platform is beneficial to having the film be seen by worldwide audiences?
BA: It was basically a great collaboration between myself and the producers at (the drama’s production company,) Wigwam Films. We came up with a strategy on how to release the movie, as well as the ideal place to premiere it. So we submitted it to Sundance, and the festival has been so supportive.
SY: What was your experience of working with Wigwam Films, the UK production outfit you just mentioned that’s run by Lucan Toh, Oliver Roskill and Emily Leo, on the horror thriller?
BA: Well, it was a very great collaborative process, even from the script-writing stage. We always had nice conversations, including how I could make the script better.
SY’ ‘Under the Shadow’ is one of the very few Middle Eastern horror films that have been released. Following the country’s Cultural Revolution, why do you think it’s important to break down the barriers of Iranian cinema, and bring the genre to the country and region?
BA: I think it’s been great to be able to help expand this genre. I want to show another side of the Middle East. As an Iranian boy who was born there, I want to show a side of the country that most people don’t know anything about.
But the film is ultimately a U.K. production that’s about a Middle Eastern country. But Iran is also the place where I’m from. So I think making a psychological horror film is a great way to introduce an international audience to that world that they may not know much about beforehand.
SY: Besides ‘Under the Shadow,’ do you have any other upcoming projects lined up, whether writing and/or directing, that you can discuss?
BA: I’m developing a few more of my ideas, but they’re still in the early stages. I’m also reading other scripts, books and material that’s being sent to me. It has been a very exciting time, and at the moment, I’m staying open to the next step.
Written by: Karen Benardello