ABOUT THE SERIES In celebration of the new film A HERO, the American Cinematheque is proud to present a retrospective of one of the most celebrated filmmakers of world cinema, Asghar Farhadi. Two-time Academy Award winner Asghar Farhadi achieved auteur status with his nuanced everyday dramas that build tension with each complication. He entered the University of Tehran in the early 1990s to study theater, and by the end of the decade had begun writing and directing for radio and television. By 2002 he had moved into features, attracting increasing international attention with such films as FIREWORKS WEDNESDAY and ABOUT ELLY (the latter a Silver Bear winner at the Berlinale). A SEPARATION proved a breakthrough success for Farhadi; the 2011 tale of a troubled divorce won more than 70 international awards including a Golden Globe, an Oscar and a César. Following a film made in France (THE PAST), he returned to Iran to make THE SALESMAN, which garnered similar acclaim and a second Oscar. “The spark can come from an image, a feeling, a succinct plot which will develop thereafter,” notes Farhadi of his work process. “Time is an important ally. Some of these seeds disappear on their own, others persist, grow and stay in you in a state of unfinished process, waiting for you to dedicate yourself to them.” In the case of A HERO, the seeds were stories of Good Samaritans he’d read in the Iranian press. While plans tend to backfire for the protagonist of this new film, Asghar Farhadi’s gift for descriptive detail, naturalistic characters and thought-provoking ambiguity rarely falters.