From Inspiration to Innovation: The Making of RUN

by Kajal Kapoor for Winter Film Festival
Meet the director and see the NYC Premiere of the feature film Run on February 21 @7:40PM at LOOK Cinemas (657 West 57th Street) as part of New York City’s 13th Annual Winter Film Festival. Tickets now on sale!

Feature Film RUN tells the story of a troubled writer running to escape the pain of a toxic relationship, crosses paths with a mysterious drifter living in his car, sparking an unlikely friendship that challenges both men to confront their pasts and find healing.  The film is the brainchild of director Bernard Kordieh and Producer Amir Rashidian, whose passion for crafting raw, emotional stories is evident in every frame. Known for pushing boundaries, they drew inspiration from a deep personal desire to connect with audiences. Their work combines a sharp eye for visual storytelling with an intense, character-driven approach.

In an exclusive interview, Bernard Kordieh shared their approach to filmmaking, which is grounded in the principle of creating stories that feel immediate and visceral. “I think it’s crucial to understand that movies are not just about what’s happening on screen, but what the audience feels. I want to create an experience, not just a narrative.”

RUN is a tense, thrilling exploration of survival, deception, and personal reckoning. Set against the backdrop of an unforgiving landscape, the film follows JB, a character running to escape the pain of a toxic relationship. With a narrative that shifts and weaves through nonlinear timelines, the film keeps the audience on edge, questioning who can be trusted and what’s real. “I wanted the audience to feel the same confusion and paranoia as the characters. It’s about not just what happens, but how it happens and when,” says Kordieh.

What makes RUN stand out is its ability to blend heart-pounding suspense with deep emotional resonance. The film weaves together a striking noir aesthetic with a modern sensibility, playing with shadows, light, and silence to enhance the stakes. Noir elements are central to the film’s tone, with its high-contrast visuals and morally ambiguous characters creating an atmosphere of constant tension. “[Noir] was always an influence,” says Kordieh. “The darkness, the shadows—there’s a certain unpredictability about noir that I wanted to carry into RUN. It’s that feeling of not knowing who or what is lurking in the background, which is exactly the type of uncertainty I wanted to evoke.”

The nonlinear storytelling approach amplifies this, leaving the audience piecing together events as they unfold. This method allows the narrative to feel fragmented, mirroring the fractured lives of the characters. “I wanted to give the audience pieces of the puzzle, but not in a way where they could just put it together immediately,” Kordieh explains. “The nonlinear approach reflects the fragmented, disjointed feeling of survival in an environment where trust is a luxury.”

Creating RUN wasn’t just about telling a story—it was about crafting a world that felt real, raw, and immediate. The production was fast-paced, with a limited budget and a tight timeline, but that only added to the creativity and innovation on set. “We didn’t have the luxury of time or resources, but what we did have was passion and a clear vision,” says Producer Amir Rashidian. “We were able to make something with so little because we weren’t trying to do too much. It was about keeping things lean and efficient.”

A memorable part of the production involved a sequence that ended up going viral on TikTok—a scene involving a drunken altercation that a bystander mistakenly thought was a real fight. “We were shooting a scene with a fight that escalates out of control, and some guy from the street thought it was real,” recalls Rashidian with a laugh. “He starts recording and yelling for help, not realizing we were shooting a scene. It was hilarious and honestly, it turned out to be a great bit of accidental promotion for the film.”

Despite the low budget, the team was able to achieve high production value by being resourceful and creative. The film’s reliance on practical effects, rather than CGI, gives it an authenticity that is rare in films with higher budgets. “Practical effects have this weight to them that CGI just can’t replicate,” says Kordieh. “We worked with the resources we had, and I think that authenticity really comes across on screen.”