Poetic-surrealist "a film about a uterus" premieres at the Polygon Gallery on June 13
Created by elika mojtabaei and Aryo Khakpour, short imagines a strange trip across town
The Polygon Gallery screens “a film about a uterus” on June 13 at 7 pm, followed by a Q&A with the filmmakers. Free with RSVP
THE SETUP IS surreal: in elika mojtabaei and Aryo Khakpour’s new short movie “a film about a uterus”, a young Iranian woman finds herself on a strange journey after her mother’s hysterectomy. Transporting her parent’s uterus in a jar to a pathologist across the city, she faces others’ aggressive behaviours while caring for the womb that birthed her—treating it a bit like her own newborn.
The poetic-surrealist theatre film premieres this week at the Polygon Gallery.
The short is created and produced by mojtabaei and Khakpour, with the latter taking on directing duties, and mojtabaei writing and designing the project. It’s inspired by a story by Ontario-based interdisciplinary artist and theatre professor Nazli Akhtari. It stars Soheila Vatandoost, Agnes Tong, and Tanaz Roudgar.
You may know Khakpour from his own form-pushing work as a Vancouver-based multidisciplinary performer, director, and dramaturg. Born and raised in Tehran, he cofounded The Biting School—an interdisciplinary dance and performance troupe known for its own surreal explorations—in 2013 with his brother Arash. Mojtabaei, meanwhile, is an Iranian-born Canadian costume designer, writer, editor, translator, and dramaturg who has been an artistic associate with The Biting School and cofounded No Small Feat.
The film shows with the duo's previous short "MUD", a video-art piece inspired by Persian poetry and storytelling, playing with image and words and exploring the parallels between the urban soundscape and the rhythms of poetry. 
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