Experiencing Interruptions?

Fading Dream

A talented woman who was punished by her father for drawing an erotic painting in the art class as a teenager, gives up painting forever. Now at 35, she imagines herself as a successful painter at her boring workplace. She goes back to that particular day in her past and tries to forgive her father.

  • Armin Etemadi
    Director
  • Armin Etemadi
    Writer
  • Armin Etemadi
    Investor
  • Ali Mardani
    Producer
  • Elaheh Bakhshi
    Key Cast
    "Sima"
  • Elina Sattari
    Key Cast
    "Teenage Sima"
  • Pooyan Aghababaei
    Director of Photography
  • Arash Aneessee
    Editor
  • Reyhaneh Esmaeilian
    Set Designer
  • Mahtab Moteasseb
    Costume Designer
  • Saman Shahamat
    Sound Recordist
  • Ramin Abousedgh
    Sound Designer
  • Payam Azadi
    Music
  • Jalal Amiri Marand
    Makeup
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    رویای نیمه‌جان
  • Project Type:
    Short, Student
  • Genres:
    Mystery, Psychological Drama, Fantasy, Melodrama
  • Runtime:
    19 minutes 58 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    May 1, 2023
  • Production Budget:
    3,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Iran, Islamic Republic of
  • Country of Filming:
    Iran, Islamic Republic of
  • Language:
    Persian
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Distribution Information
  • AtoZinema Pictures Inc.
Director Biography - Armin Etemadi

Armin Etemadi, born on 24th September 1989, got his M.Sc. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Sharif University of Technology in 2015. Afterwards he embarked on cinema studies and completed a full course on filmmaking at the Iranian Youth Cinema Society (IYCS) and got his master of filmmaking degree. There he directed some experimental and student short films. His first professional short film named “The Woman Who Laughs” (2021) won 3 international awards and officially selected for up to 12 international film festivals. He is also into writing about cinema and women studies. He collaborated with Zanan-e Emrooz (Modern Women), the only professional magazine in Iran exclusively for Iranian women’s issues.

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Director Statement

Depicting strong women in a patriarchal society like Iran has always been interesting to me. The contrast between the old-fashioned society and the women fighting against the traditional order is the uttermost dramatic story to tell.

In "Fading Dream" I planned to portray the life of a woman who is involved in a serious crisis with her father. She carries an unpleasant memory from her childhood; in which her father did something that moved her away from the main interest of her life, painting. Throughout the movie, the woman tries to forgive her father and get over this memory by rehabilitating that unpleasant day and also by dreaming about her unfulfilled life again and again. In fact nurturing this dream inside, is the woman’s unconscious act to heal the dark side of her childhood; that ultimately leads to a heroic forgiveness.

In order to create the dreamy atmosphere of the film, despite the very limited budget, we had to build décor in our location. The difficult part besides the financial issues, was that we had to create a manifestation of this mental world that had to be both visually attractive and not seem decorative at the same time, and this made everything more delicate and complicated. Considering a long period for pre-production and collaborating with compassionate staff, I was finally able to create the world that I wanted with the lowest possible cost. Now that I watch the final result, I can tell that "Fading Dream" is the lost life story of many Iranian women.