Manhaz Jarchi

Mahnaz Jarchi is an Iranian screenwriter and filmmaker committed to defending women’s rights and creative freedom. Her audiovisual work bravely explores themes such as gender inequality, political repression, and the everyday struggles of women’s lives in Iran. Together with Mahmoud Ghaffari, she has developed a body of critical film work that has faced censorship in her home country.

In 2024, Jarchi began an artistic residency as part of the Barcelona Artists at Risk Residency Programme, focusing on the post-production of her latest feature film. During this period, she also led awareness-raising activities, including film forums centred on her previous works: The Day of the Apple (CCCB) and Hair (La Ciba, Santa Coloma de Gramenet), creating spaces for dialogue around the situation of Iranian women and the role of cinema as a tool for resistance.

The day of the apple

The Day of the Apple is an intimate and deeply symbolic portrait of women’s everyday lives in Iran. Directed by Mahmoud Ghaffari and written by Mahnaz Jarchi, the film was selected for the Generation Kplus section at the 2022 Berlinale, where it captivated international audiences with its sensitivity and poetic power.

Told through a restrained and profoundly human lens, the film depicts an apparently ordinary day that becomes a powerful metaphor for structural oppression and the quiet resilience of Iranian women. With a minimalist aesthetic and contemplative rhythm, Jarchi crafts a work that subtly denounces the restrictions imposed on female bodies and desires.

As part of the residency, the film was screened at the CCCB, followed by a discussion that opened a space for reflection on cinema, human rights, and freedom of expression. The Day of the Apple thus stands as a vital piece of contemporary resistance cinema, whose aesthetic and ethical honesty places it firmly within the landscape of politically engaged international film.

Original title: Rooz-e Sib (The Apple Day)
Year: 2022
Director: Mahmoud Ghaffari
Screenplay: Mahnaz Jarchi
Cinematography: Ali Ehsani
Editing: Mahmoud Ghaffari
Music: Ali Mansour

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