« ONE DAY IN TEHRAN » is a documentary series in the deeper sense insofar as it is not a simple collection of individual stories, but an ensemble of stories that are organically interlinked, where certain places and characters are connected. Our aim is to share the daily life experiences of inhabitants of the Iranian capital, Teheran, a city of almost 10 million as if we were there, not as if magnified through heroic deeds and exceptional events.

The directors of « ONE DAY IN TEHRAN” are exclusively Iranian, men and women living in Iran. They’ve chosen places, people, stories that without pretending to be representative are significant and reveal the lifestyle of their immense city.

Whilst dozens of people were met, only a few were selected, which led to the brainstorm of themes and story lines. Nothing preconceived, but nevertheless shaped by the constant questioning of our teams on behalf of the complex realities faced by the country that they know intimately. Giving the very particular alchemy to such a series by leaving itself open to raw, unpolished or random events.

This connection with daily life and real events is particularly relevant here: representing different social spheres, different generations of men and women, from highly populated neighbourhoods in the south to rich neighbourhoods in the north and different ways of practicing religion.

Diversity is the keyword, which is how we discover a beauty salon where we observe women’s social interactions in the course of a haircut, having their intimate details divulged. A coffee truck shared by two young adults who go out to meet different inhabitants of Teheran thanks to the effectiveness of Iran’s social media’s sphere. A former homeless person and drug addict who became a social worker in order to help those in need of a second chance. A holy man who officiates funerals and religious ceremonies, trying to help faithful people cry out their emotions to reach paradise. The singularity of a hermit living in the mountains of northern Teheran, spending his days helping trees grow and survive in a place where inhabitants come to escape pollution.

In each film we meet a « poem seller »: an old Persian tradition that aims to randomly pick out a poem out of traditional classical literature that plays the role of a fortune teller by giving more or less explicit indications on how to lead your life the same day. Therefore examining one’s fate or striving to change it…could this be called liberty?

The intention behind « ONE DAY IN TEHRAN »  is to meet with the real Iran that does not correspond to the one shaped by the agenda of the regime and its adversaries nor the sceptical stigma shaped by western countries. A dark and depressed country? Potentially but perhaps a society filled with the hopes coming from its population and younger generations which strives to make their lives easier.