By Miniature Malekpour
For women in Iran, life changed dramatically after the 1979 Iranian Revolution.
The new Islamic Republic of Iran enforced compulsory veiling, legalised polygamy, severely restricted women’s rights to divorce and child custody, lowered the minimum marriage age for girls, and gave husbands legal authority over their wives’ movements and sexual autonomy.
These conditions led to the 2022 Zan, Zendegi, Azadi (Woman, Life, Freedom) movement, triggered by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini. Amini died in September 2022 while in the custody of Iran’s morality police, after being detained for allegedly violating hijab regulations.
For more than 40 years, Iranian women filmmakers have documented these conditions and protested against them. These seven films are essential viewing to understand their experiences and the broader systems that enable them.
