After getting a cry for help via an email from a young Iranian woman living through the turmoil in her country, 1stAveMachine is releasing a PSA in support of Iranians who are fighting the regime that has been oppressing them for more than 40 years.
“The people of Iran need to know the whole world is standing behind them,” the email reads in part. “They need hope. This war is not just ours.”
“Since then,” the email explains, “most Iranians are protesting, unarmed, on the streets against the government’s violent armed forces. Innocent people are being killed. Children are being murdered.”
With the help of its directors and artists, the company created two 1:49 videos, one in Farsi and this one in English, designed to communicate the events that have been taking place in Iran, especially since a 22-year-old Kurd named Massa Amini was murdered for not wearing her hijab “properly.”
The videos are a compilation of footage found on social media. “Our aim was to accentuate the force of the fight and the bravery of these women,” shared film directors Elda Broglio and Oliver James Peters in a joint statement. “This is why we chose the water lily moving forward on the river as a symbol of hope and the footage at the end with the school girls with their hair totally exposed.”
The song that accompanies the piece is an instrumental version of the “Baraye,” written by 20-year-old Shervin Hajipour, which has become an anthem for the protests in Iran. Hajipour has since been arrested by the government.
Other elements of the “Woman Life Freedom” campaign include three :30 videos and five out-of-home elements.
