Visit Films has acquired worldwide sales rights to “Mortician,” the latest feature from Iranian filmmaker Abdolreza Kahani which is set to world premiere in competition at the 2025 Edinburgh International Film Festival.
Starring Nima Sadr (“A Shrine”) and Gola and Pouya Razavi, “Mortician,” produced by Niva Art, centers on a reclusive funeral worker in Canada tasked with preparing the bodies of deceased Iranian exiles according to their tradition. When an unexpected request comes from a dissident singer in hiding, his solitude and routine is broken — and so is to an extent his passivity.
“We have spent a long time cultivating outsider cinema, and ‘Mortician’ has the spirit of the best independent cinema from decades past while incorporating a political and economic message vital to today,” said Visit Films President Ryan Kampe.
Kahani, known for biting, often censored social satires like “Over There” and Karlovy Vary winner “Twenty,” has recently embraced what he calls “one-person cinema,” shedding crews, funding cycles and formalities to make films entirely on his own — often with just a phone in hand.
“When I made ‘A Shrine,’ I started working alone. And it felt right. Not as a bold statement — just as something that fit. I call it one-person cinema. I live simply, with just a suitcase. I want that same simplicity in filmmaking — intuitive, light, and free. It helped me return to something essential,” Kahani told Variety.
“Mortician” is his second feature using this stripped-back method, following “A Shrine” which played Edinburgh last year. For Kahani, the shift was both philosophical and practical. “After many years making films with large crews, I reached a point of exhaustion — not with the work itself, but with everything surrounding it,” he explained. “I needed to reconnect with something more honest.”
That honesty emerges through the film’s process as much as its plot. There was no fixed script. Scenes were written and discarded as the story evolved organically, shaped by mood, what was available on the day. “The process was alive,” he said. Humor, shock, and intrigue are the result.
Still, Kahani is quick to distance his approach from being a recommendation. “It’s not for everyone. You need humility, patience, and the ability to let go of control. There’s no spotlight. No crew. Just you, your phone, and the story.”
That story touches on much more than the quiet rituals of death, broadening ever outward to the realities and immense dangers of living with an independent spirit. For Kahani, who himself has faced censorship in Iran and exile abroad, it’s about urgency.
“I couldn’t stay quiet. I couldn’t scroll or post or wait. I had to act,” he said. “The reach of the Islamic Republic extends far beyond Iran. It endangers lives around the world — including those of the people in this film.”
The performances, too, carry that tension. “Nima’s energy in ‘Mortician’ is completely different from ‘A Shrine,’ even if the characters come from similar social roots,” said Kahani. “And Gola, though she’s a singer in real life, prepared seriously for this role. She’s not playing herself — she’s building someone new.”
With no institutional funding and no traditional production backing, Kahani remains resolute. “If support comes, I’ll take it. If not, I’ll still make the film. Maybe one day I’ll release films without a country name — like an athlete with no flag.”
“Cinema is how I breathe,” he said. “I don’t wait. I work to stay awake. To not go numb.”
“Mortician” is executive produced by Zahra Safari, Kahani and Sadr. Visit Films is handling global rights.
