Watching In the shadow of the cypress feels like seeing an old Persian poem come to life, rich in symbolism, delicate, yet powerful in its evocation of human emotions. Directed by Iranian duo Hossein Molayemi and Shirin Sohani, the film tells of the complex relationship between a tormented father and his daughter, living humbly in a small house by the sea. A war veteran suffering from PTSD, the father struggles with his inner demons, under the helpless eyes of his caring daughter.
The intricacies of the parent-child bond is a theme that both directors always wanted to explore, inspired by their relationships with their respective fathers. The tension between the characters mirrors Hossein’s own strained relation with his father. Shirin’s, a veteran who lost an eye during the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war, influenced the development of the father’s character. After he helped them gaining access to hospitals where they were able to meet other veterans treated for PTSD, they decided to include that element into the story, adding depth to the character on screen, as he keeps suffering from flashbacks of his traumatic past.
The directors deliberately chose a minimalist, almost bare imagery for the film, as both wanted the audience to focus on the story, rather than its technical beauty. The film is however as visually stunning as the characters are touching. It is not surprising to learn that Hossein and Shirin graduated in fine arts, before gravitating towards the world of animation, which they found, allowed them more freedom to blend their love of visual expression and storytelling. Their artistry transpires throughout the film, in its references to painting and their delicate use of color. For all its minimalism, the film unfolds like a rich visual tapestry of emotions. Warm, pastel tones, reflecting the daughter’s caring nature and attempt at reaching out to her father contrast with brush strokes of black and blue, revealing her father’s trauma and suffering.
The film abounds with symbols subtly referencing Persian culture and Iran’s recent history. With his thin frame and bent shape, the father is an incarnation of the titular cypress. Although that tree is usually associated with mourning in the West, it stands as a symbol of honesty, morality and resistance in Persian culture. It also happens to be the emblem of the veterans of the Iran-Iraq war, representing their dedication to the defense of their country. Under an unforgiving sun, the father stands behind his daughter, attempting to reach out to her after one of his outbursts, as she sits forlorn in his shadow. “In English, being overshadowed means you can’t be seen, you can’t make progress. But in the Persian language, being in someone’s shadow is a symbol of protection and shelter’, explains Hossein. Although the father seems to bend under the weight of his trauma, he is still standing there, the shade of his thin silhouette embracing his daughter, as a gesture of protection.
Molayemi and Shirin Sohani (doc. Minikino)
This symbolism and multiple layers of interpretation reveal a bittersweet love letter to a country extremely rich in natural and cultural beauty but marred by its tormented history. Discreet yet striking elements of Persian culture are strewn throughout the movie. The architecture of the house with its sandy walls and rugged texture, reminiscent of Persian traditional desert dwellings. An intricate carpet laid out in an otherwise humble interior. And here and there, the discreet presence of the sound of the oud, a traditional instrument favored by Persian poets of old. Father and daughter live on an apparently beautiful and calm shore, but both directors chose the sea as a reference to the Persian Gulf, lying at the South of Iran, an area where heated combats took place during the war. The father’s lenj, a traditional vessel Persian traders sailed to carry spices and precious textiles as far as India and Africa in the past, now barely floats as a wreck shredded with bullet holes, a mirror of the current state of the country.
“You have to be insane to make an animation film, especially in Iran” half-jokes Hossein as he recounts the almost 7 years it took to complete the movie. The directors and their team were greatly affected by the particularly grim situation in Iran in recent years, which forced them to put the film on hold countless times. The heavy economic sanctions put in place by the international community have devastated the Iranian economy for decades, making it even more difficult to secure funding and forcing the directors to exchange their rapidly devaluing rials into foreign currency. Finding qualified animators also proved difficult, as many talents have left the country, fleeing its darkening socio-political context. Working under the permanent surveillance, censorship and filtering of the Iranian state turned a simple task such as sending each other files into an obstacle course. The Covid-19 pandemic put a further strain on an already bleak situation, which culminated with the mass protest movement of 2022 following the death of Mahsa Amini, killed for not wearing her hijab according to the moral police’s standards. Although the directors could simply not avert their eyes from strife of such magnitude, they soldiered on with the belief in the significance of their art and pulled off an impossible feat.
In this improbable context, they dedicated themselves to the “normal” painstaking process of making animation, steering the director’s wheel with four hands. Working together on Hossein’s previous film, Run Rostam Run, convinced these partners in life to co-direct. Both were adamant on creating an original visual style as devoid as possible of references to what has already “been done”. Developing the imagery of the film was a slow process of perpetual refining to achieve this particular atmosphere that lets the characters and their bond shine. Some shots took several months to create, patiently and meticulously crafted like the work of a goldsmith.
“The film becomes only complete for us when it is received by the audience” insists Shirin. The response has for sure been astounding, matching the level of dedication that was poured into it. In the shadow of the cypress competed at major festivals such as the Mostra in Venice and the Annecy International Animation Festival, bringing home fully deserved awards, including Best Animated Short at Tribeca. Hossein and Shirin could not believe their eyes when they received an email from John Musker, the legendary director of Aladdin and Moana, praising their work. Both are now dreaming of seeing the film continue its epic journey all the way to the Oscars. May the cypress keep casting its growing shadow far and wide.
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