Tsar Amir Ebrahimi: Win to Survive

It is said that “Tatami” is the first feature film with an Iranian-Israeli co-director. What does that mean for you?

For me the message is: friendship and peace. My co-director Guy Nattiv and I both grew up in systems that brainwashed us. We were expected to be enemies. Living in exile in France opened windows to the world for me. I met many Jewish Israelis who became friends and colleagues. It became increasingly clear to me how far the ideological influence had gone. When I first came to Tel Aviv, I asked myself: How is this possible? Why are we enemies? We look alike, we like the same food, we have the same culture. It’s almost like we live in the same country.

How did you respond when Guy Nattiv asked you to appear in the film about an Iranian judoka?

It wasn’t easy for me to decide on this project. I had fears – also when it came to artistic work. How can two directors with their respective egos work together? And then there is the highly explosive political aspect. I am Iranian, he is Israeli. On the other hand: I was afraid of my own country, the country in which I grew up. People are executed in Iran simply if someone claims that they collaborated with Israel and the Zionists. Often it’s just about propaganda and manipulating people.

But I probably wouldn’t have been able to make the film with Guy if he had a completely different political view than me. We discussed a lot at the beginning and I took my time with my decision. I like his films very much. And little by little I also understood that we have the same vision. I thought to myself: Maybe it’s a mistake to participate, but that would be humane. In any case, it would have been fundamentally wrong to refrain from taking the risk. Now I’m very happy that I agreed. It’s not just a political film. I am very proud of the strong artistic result.

Interview

KRIS DEWITTE

Tsar Amir, also known as Tsar Amir Ebrahimi, is an Iranian actress living in exile in Paris. She studied at the Drama Academy in Tehran and acted on stage as well as in television series and films. She became known outside Iran through her participation in the rotoscope animated film “Tehran Taboo,” which premiered at the 2017 Cannes Festival. She has received several international awards for her work, including best actress at the 75th Festival de Cannes in 2022 for her performance in the film “Holy Spider”. In 2019 she founded her own production company Alambic Production.
“Tatami” was the first feature film she directed. She also plays one of the main roles. Her co-director Guy Nattiv is an Israeli filmmaker whose most recent feature, “Golda – Israel’s Iron Lady,” played Helen Mirren, Israel’s first female prime minister. His short film “Skin” won the Oscar for Best Live-Action Short Film in 2019.

They decided to tell the story as a kind of thriller in black and white. Why?

From the beginning, we both knew that telling the story of an Iranian woman was more important than making an entertaining, colorful sports film. It should be a good, artistically valuable film. We are both very connected to independent cinema and that’s why we got along very well. I liked the idea of ​​telling this powerful story in black and white. And to orchestrate everything accordingly: the moods, the make-up, the camera pans. We also had to find a way to approach the sport. For us, judo is a kind of dance – so we agreed that the camera would “dance” with the judokas.

How long did filming last?

We only had 24 days to shoot. It was a very intense time – also because we all came from different countries and communication was sometimes difficult. In order to avoid conflicts, Guy and I came to an agreement: he would take more care of the preparations for filming and the camera technology and I would take more care of the actors and costumes. Once we were on set, we worked hand in hand.

You were first asked to play Leila’s coach, Maryam. She is literally torn between her sporting ambitions and the pressure from the regime. Only later did you become part of the directing team. How did that happen?

After reading the script, I told Guy that I couldn’t really see the character of Maryam yet. The basis was there and also interesting. But something was missing. I noticed that the real crux of the plot is how two generations of women deal with the given situation. The younger one doesn’t want to lie anymore and the older one has been living with her lies for years and will regret it at some point. I suggested to Guy that he rework the character of Maryam. Eventually a version of the character emerged that I liked. All of these discussions about authenticity that we had benefited the film. At the time, Holy Spider, which I starred in, was coming out, and Guy knew how involved I was in the production and casting, among other things. So he suggested that I do the rest of the casting on Tatami. So I became a kind of partner for him.

Can you act and direct at the same time?

I’ve been doing a variety of things in film for many years, all of which I find interesting. I’m never satisfied with just playing. When I act, I am involved in all directorial decisions. Some directors don’t like that, but then they won’t work with me. I’m an actress, but I have to discuss my character, about the camera work and how we move in space and what happens next. It’s not easy, it depends on how you deal with it. It was good to have Guy there. If I wasn’t happy with my performance, I wanted to do it again. He understood that.

You say you have overcome fears by working on “Tatami.” Can the film also bring other people closer together?

I know we can’t change the world with movies. But I believe we can inspire people. If only ten audience members come out of the screening with tears in their eyes, I think: we have done our job. It’s not just about the Middle East. I’m currently filming in the Caucasus. The same hatred rages between Armenians and Azerbaijanis as between Iran and Israel. There are warring parties and extremists all over the world. If we encourage people to get to know and understand each other better, we would have a better world. We need to listen to each other, touch and feel each other.

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In “Tatami,” judoka Leila has to decide whether she will obey the regime’s demands or accept a life in exile. You yourself left Iran for political reasons. What parallels are there between athletes and filmmakers?

Sports and cinema have similarities in that they reach a large audience and have a lot of influence. Every time one When a filmmaker or an athlete opens their mouth, it has changed a lot on a symbolic level. We need these heroes to speak out. Our film is about the big, life-changing decision to leave the country and fight for your own freedom and your own career. There is now an international refugee judoka team. The trainer became a good friend and gave us a lot of advice. He was one of the first athletes to say “no.” The list of Iranian athletes who had to give up their careers because of Iran’s problem with Israel is long.

Living in exile is not easy. This applies to athletes as well as artists. It took me many years to learn the new culture and master the language and build a network so I could tell my stories and work again. Athletes are in the same situation. The moment they made the decision, it was clear that they couldn’t go back. The only way to survive is to win.

While you were making the film, the young Iranian woman Jina Mahsa Amini died in police custody after being arrested by the moral police. This led to enormous protests that shook the country. What influence did that have on your work?

We started filming two months after her death, at the height of the demonstrations. There were new videos of protests every day. There was an enthusiastic atmosphere on the set – not only among the Iranian crew, but also among the Israeli, Georgian and American crew. Everyone was involved. There are some moments in the film that we didn’t really expect, but that happened because we all shared the same feeling, the same outrage and the same euphoria. It felt like a revolutionary act for us to make this film about a new generation of female athletes.