Documentary Honors Iranians Who Risk Everything to Film Dissent
Inspired by the powerful Woman, Life, Freedom uprising that swept through Iran in 2022, two dedicated film students have created a poignant documentary titled Memories of a Window. This compelling film focuses on the courageous individuals who anonymously record footage from behind windows, providing crucial evidence of state violence and challenging official narratives. The documentary is having its world premiere at the prestigious Berlin film festival this week, serving as a tribute to those who risk their lives to document truth.
The Final Command That Inspired a Film
The project originated from a heartbreaking viral video that emerged from Iran in late 2022. The footage showed a woman being shot by security forces while using her phone to document a violent crackdown on anti-government protests. Her final words, "Film it!" became both a command and an inspiration. Mehraneh Salimian graduated from art school on that very same day, and those powerful last words guided her creative partnership with Amin Pakparvar to create their documentary short.
Memories of a Window is dedicated specifically to the slain woman, Shirin Alizadeh, and honors the vital role that amateur videos play in recording and empowering dissent within Iran. The film explores how ordinary citizens have become documentarians of their own reality, capturing evidence that contradicts state media portrayals of events.
Compiling Anonymous Evidence of Brutality
Now studying film in Chicago, Salimian and Pakparvar worked extensively with a massive collection of anonymous smartphone videos. They estimate having viewed approximately 2,000 individual clips, supplemented by their own footage gathered during their time in Tehran throughout the 2022-23 uprising period. "We're hoping that we can isolate this period of time in Iranian history," explains 26-year-old Salimian. "Although there has since been even more brutality happening, more violence, that period was important too."
The filmmakers highlight the unique perspective of individuals filming from the relative safety behind car or home windows. This technique allows citizens to hold authorities accountable while minimizing personal risk, creating what Salimian describes as "a protest movement behind windows." This approach has been adopted in other global contexts as well, including during recent anti-ICE protests in Minneapolis.
The Tragic Story Behind the Footage
Shirin Alizadeh's story forms the emotional core of the documentary. On September 22, 2022, Alizadeh was traveling in a car with her husband and two companions when they encountered protesters being shot dead in the streets of Salman Shahr. From the relative safety of their vehicle, she began filming the chaotic scene as security forces opened fire on demonstrators. Her urgent command to a fellow passenger, "Film it!" was captured on audio as a woman appeared to lie fatally wounded on the roadside.
Tragically, moments later, at least one bullet pierced the rear window of the car, striking 36-year-old Alizadeh in the neck and head. She later died in hospital, becoming another casualty of the government's violent response to dissent. Amnesty International has documented her case as part of their reporting on human rights violations in Iran.
Contrasting Images of Repression and Resistance
The documentary powerfully intercuts these distressing images with uplifting scenes that Salimian and Pakparvar captured from their own apartment during the same period. These moments show neighbors joining together in a chorus of anti-regime protest songs, their voices rising from multiple apartments in a collective act of defiance. "For decades Iranians have been protesting and every time their voices have been suppressed and censored," notes 28-year-old Pakparvar. "But a couple of years after that, they protested again in higher numbers. It's their courage that is contagious."
Government Countermeasures and Continued Resistance
As the protests evolved from initial focus on women's rights restrictions toward a broader movement, authorities implemented internet blackouts to prevent the sharing of videos documenting state violence. "This is a strategy of state and it's kind of working but not fully," Pakparvar observes. "There were Starlink satellites that people managed to use to distribute images. Every day we see more and more videos of the massacre. It's heartbreaking."
The filmmakers face their own challenges in presenting their work. Due to being in the United States on student visas, they cannot attend the Berlin premiere in person because of travel restrictions. However, they plan to participate via video link, ensuring their voices and perspectives reach the festival audience.
Universal Resonance of the Struggle
Early screenings in Chicago have demonstrated the film's broad relevance, with fellow students drawing parallels to situations in China during COVID lockdowns and activism during the Black Lives Matter movement in the United States. "It shows that we are living in a very vulnerable moment internationally and people are looking for freedom in various contexts," Pakparvar reflects.
Despite the challenges and dangers, both filmmakers maintain hope for Iran's future. "We are pretty hopeful to be honest. They can't control it any more," Pakparvar says of the current regime. "Maybe if you had asked us 10 years ago, we would have had no general sense of what kind of freedom we want. But now it's crystal clear. We know our rights, we know the goal, and we know the values that we want in our life and in our home country."
The Berlin film festival has long been a platform for Iranian dissident filmmakers, and this year's event continues that tradition with Iranian creatives displaying "Free Iran" signs on the red carpet and staging performances symbolizing those killed during recent protests. Memories of a Window stands as both documentation and tribute to the ongoing struggle for truth and freedom in Iran.
