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Shayda

Directed, written and co-produced by first-time Iranian filmmaker Noora Niasari, this is a remarkably assured and accomplished debut about a woman struggling to escape a violent husband. Winner of the Audience Award at Sundance Film Festival, the Iranian-Australian drama is co-produced by London-based company HanWay Films.

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Synopsis

Iranian woman Shayda (Zar Amir Ebrahimi) takes refuge in an Australian women's shelter with her six-year-old daughter, Mona (Selina Zahednia). Determined not to let their situation ruin the Persian New Year, they take part in Nowruz rituals and new beginnings, but when her controlling husband reappears, their path to freedom is endangered.