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The Fox and the Pink Moon

1.020251h 15mHDSUB76,398 views

Director: Mehrdad Oskouei
Cast: Soraya Akhalaghi

Storyline

At just 16, Soraya already creates striking paintings and sculptures that blend beauty and darkness. This determined Afghan sculptor and illustrator has spent five years trying to leave Iran and reunite with her mother in Austria. This layered self-portrait weaves together her harrowing escape scenes, political news from Afghanistan, and videos of her singing, dancing, or showing her bruises. Soraya is married to a violent man and is determined to shape her own future. Director Mehrdad Oskouei guided the film remotely throughout, with all footage shot by Soraya herself on her phone over five years. The material is interspersed with her paintings and surreal animated sequences. For Soraya, art is no idle pastime: she pours all her worries, joys, and fears into her paintings and sculptures made from soaked egg cartons or clay found along the way. Many of her works feature recurring figures: a loyal fox, her travel companion; a pink moon that always watches over her; and a clown who never smiles—a character Soraya identifies with.