“Rush” Documentary Explores 12-Day Resistance of Iranian People
According to cinemadrame News Agency, Nima Mahdian’s new film, “Rush” (Rash), is a documentary about the 12-day resistance of the Iranian people, with filming commencing concurrently with the Israeli regime’s aggression against Iran.
Nima Mahdian stated about the film: “Unlike conventional documentaries, this film doesn’t narrate; it observes. But not ordinary observation; rather, it’s observation simultaneously through two engaged, curious, and sometimes doubtful perspectives. The viewer sits in the position of the creator, hearing questions that usually remain behind closed editing doors. What makes ‘Rush’ worth watching is not its content but its approach to the content; a human, live, and raw encounter. For the first time, you are present not at the end, but at the beginning of the narrative; where everything is still unformed, but truth is erupting.”
He continued: “To be honest, we just sat and watched. We didn’t narrate anything. The cameras had spoken before us. Our voice – mine and my editor’s – is merely a silent attempt to understand what is happening; an attempt not to interpret but to listen.”
In another part of the interview, Mahdian answered the question of what makes this experience different: “I must say: We did not remove any image based on strength or weakness. No one was an absolute hero for us, and no one sat in the position of an accused. We only wanted you, who are watching this film today, to know how the people of Iran lived during those days: with fear, with hope, with protest, with kindness… Whatever it was, it was life.”
He concluded: “Without making any claims, we created a work that doesn’t seek to judge, but invites: to see, to hear, and to reflect. ‘Rush,’ more than a film about war, is a mirror of humanity in crisis. And this, perhaps, is the rarest characteristic of art in an age of clamor.”
“Rush” is a production of the Documentary, Experimental, and Animation Film Development Center. Nima Mahdian was responsible for the cinematography, Farshad Ekhtesabi is the editor of the project, and Arash Ghasemi performed the sound mixing.
Nima Mahdian’s directorial credits include the documentaries “A Handful of Soil” (Yek Vajab Khak) and “That Man Came by Bus” (An Mard Ba Otobus Amad), among others.
