ASGHAR FARHADI

Asghar Farhadi, born 7 May 1972, is an Iranian film director and screenwriter. For his work as a director, he has received a Golden Globe Award and an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, among many other awards. He was named one of the 100 Most Influential People in the world by Time magazine in 2012. Here's an interview of Asghar Farhadi about his most famous film “A Seperation”.
 

Q: There are many things in the film that are left unexplained. Why is that?
A: Why should I always expose everything? I think, maybe, instead of telling about the first husband, I leave it up to the audience to make up a story for themselves. I think it's better this way. If I had mentioned a few things about the first husband, then the audience's imagination could only fill in so much. But having said nothing about him at all, the audience's imagination can create a complete story. For example, Ahmad left his wife four years ago. I could have justified this in a way, but I didn't want to—and this is because I don't want the film to end for an audience, I want the audience to leave the film with it still in their minds, asking questions. Why did he leave? I think I am saying a lot by not saying anything—I'm just doing it indirectly. For example, we don't know why Ahmad left four years ago, but the fact that when he comes into the house he's always looking to fix and mend things, that is saying something about him. We could imagine that this character who is always looking to fix things comes into this society which is a bit passive and he feels he cannot do anything. And this is in a way saying things indirectly.
 

Q: It's conventional to introduce a character quickly by having somebody explain who they are and how they relate to the other people in the film, but in this film you don't do that.
A. When you're telling a story, you need to be thinking about drama. Drama simply means that the audience cannot predict what's next. For me this is not a game—there's a philosophy behind it. And this is just like life, because you cannot know what's happening next in life. This is what makes life so attractive. For example, many people ask me how people live in my country, and why I would want to be there or go back. I tell them that it is attractive to me precisely because I can never predict what will happen next. In Switzerland you can have a five-year plan. But I would never want to live in Switzerland, because if I knew what was going to happen five years down the line I just wouldn't want to do any of it. In my stories it's the same thing. I don't want my audience to know what story they're watching after one minute.
 

FILMOGRAPHY
2003 Dancing in the Dust
2004 The Beautiful City
2006 Fireworks Wednesday
2009 About Elly
2011 A Separation
2013 The Past