- Feature + Shorts Screening
- Film Screening
Date: February 19, 2026
Time: 8:30 pm – 11:15 pm
Location:
Regal Union Square Theater 1
850 Broadway
New York, New York 10003
There will be a Q&A Session with the filmmakers at 10:55 PM. These films have not been rated and some content may not be appropriate for children.
Q&A session to be moderated by Azadeh Moaveni, NYU Associate Professor, Director Global and Joint Program Studies
- Animated Film Competition
Like Friend, Like Deer
Directed by: Malek Eghbali
Country: Iran
Minutes: 13
Premiere:
NYC Premiere
LIKE FRIEND, LIKE DEER tells the story of a wildlife ranger in a critical situation who kills an illegal hunter during a confrontation. This short film explores the deep connection and hidden similarities between humans, animals, and the environment they share.
- Short Film Competition
A Good Day Will Come
Directed by: Amir Zargara
Country: Canada / Iran / Turkey
Minutes: 25
Arash is a professional wrestler with dreams of representing his country and winning gold medals. The country is in turmoil and its people are suffering. Arash must decide between using his platform to stand up to tyranny, or put his head down and remain silent.- Short Film Competition
237 Degrees Celsius
Directed by: Ayda Bahrampour, Mahdi Habibi
Country: Iran / United States
Minutes: 6
A coffee order goes terribly wrong when a young man walks into his regular café only to find that no one understands him. 237 DEGREES CELSIUS emerged as a response to the pervasive absurdity of the city, capturing its surreal yet profoundly human essence. Set against a backdrop that blends the mundane with the surreal, the film explores the unsettling experience of a protagonist who wakes up to find that his closest friends have inexplicably adopted a language he cannot understand. This seemingly simple yet deeply disorienting premise sets the stage for a broader exploration of alienation, exclusion, and the silent fractures that run through society.- Short Film Competition
Land of the Dead Deer
Directed by: Anahita Gharcheh, Souroush Javadzadeh
Country: Iran / United States
Minutes: 15
A boy who hasn’t yet gone to school has a sphere that he uses to see his own dreamy world. One day, he sees a deer through it and follows it into an abandoned school. But he doesn’t know that it’s a graveyard of children’s dreams.- Short Film Competition
The Gentleman
Directed by: Alireza Sharifi
Country: Iran / United States
Minutes: 10
Premiere:
World Premiere
Warning:
THE GENTLEMAN tells the story of an office worker who leads a double life. Beneath his polished, masculine exterior lies a hidden world of desire and transformation revealed only in private. The film explores identity, repression, and the secret selves that exist behind closed doors.- Feature Film Competition
Method To My Madness
Directed by: Hoda Hamzehali, Behrang Mortazavian
Country: Iran / Türkiye
Minutes: 78
Premiere:
NYC Premiere
Warning:
METHOD TO MY MADNESS is a psychological drama that follows a man struggling to reconcile his inner turmoil with the expectations imposed on him by society. As reality and perception begin to blur, he is forced to confront unresolved trauma and the fragile boundaries of control. The film explores the cost of repression, the search for identity, and the quiet violence of the mind.
