Iranian tragicomedy “Punch Drunk” has won the best screenplay award at the 16th Cheboksary International Film Festival in Russia. Director Adel Tabrizi co-wrote the screenplay with Arsalan Amiri.

After accepting the award, Tabrizi dedicated it to Ferdows Kaviani, a veteran Iranian actor who is suffering from Parkinson’s disease.

Set in Tehran in 1996, the story of the film follows Mahtab who lives along with her 10-year-old child, Erfan. She is divorced from her husband, Morteza, who is in jail. Mahtab has enrolled her child in a karate class so that he does not end up like his father as far as his character is concerned. Erfan’s only interest is cinema and could not care less about sports. Hassan Khoshnud, the tough and serious karate instructor with his dictatorial methods causes Erfan to run away one day from the karate academy in the middle of exercises.

The winners of the Cheboksary festival, which is dedicated to ethnic and regional cinema, were announced last Thursday.

The Grand Prix in the feature film competition was awarded to “Everybody Hates Johan” by Norwegian director Hallvar Witzo.

The film is a comedy about Johan, a small-town loner with a flair for horses and explosives. He finds himself in constant conflict with the community, struggling to find his place in society while coping with unrequited love for his neighbor, whom accidentally blew to bits while in his teens.

Semyon Serzin from Russia was selected as best director for his film “A Similar Man”

The best actor prize went to Paul Sverre Hagen for his role in “Everybody Hates Johan”, while Olga Lapshina and Valentina Telichkina shared the award for best actress for their roles in the Russian drama “The Garden” by Larisa Sadilova.

The Grand Prix in the Ethnic and Regional Film Competition was given to “Knots” by Russian director Oleg Khamokov)

The film was directed based on an ancient Caucasian legend about the Adiyuh tower, which is located in Karachay-Cherkessia. According to legend, the young Adiyuh was kidnapped and locked in an impregnable tower by Prince Psabida.

“How People Live” by Russian director Pavel Skorobogatov won the Grand Prix for best documentary film.

The film focuses on the inhabitants of the Buryat village of Moigoty, of which there are only six left, living for more than twenty years outside of civilization without light and electricity. Being forgotten by the authorities, they do not want to go anywhere, they are building a hotel in the hope that tourists will come to them, and they are waiting for electricity and other utilities to be brought to them. /T.T/

Iranian female taekwondo athlete Nahid Kiani has made history by clinching the coveted gold medal at the 2023 Taekwondo World Championships.

Facing off against China’s Ju Zuo in the women’s -53kg weight category, Kiani, a deserving member of the Iranian national team, emerged as the sole representative of Iran in the finals of the championships held in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan.

Kiani dominated the match on Sunday, scoring a 2-0 victory over her Chinese rival.

The remarkable victory marks the first time an Iranian female athlete has achieved a gold medal in the history of the world championships.

In the first round, Kiani delivered an impressive performance, overpowering Zuo with an emphatic 14-0 victory. She continued her winning streak in the second round, defeating Zuo 11-7 and securing the world title.

Throughout the championships, Kiani showcased her exceptional talent and athletic prowess by triumphing over formidable opponents from South Korea, Hungary, Croatia, and Russia.

In the semifinal, Kiani faced off against Russia’s Tatiana Minina, engaging in a thrilling three-round battle. Despite trailing behind until the final two seconds of the third round, Kiani delivered two powerful blows, earning a decisive 10-6 victory and securing her place in the final.

With her groundbreaking victory, Kiani has not only cemented Iran’s position on the global taekwondo stage, but has also etched her name in history as a trailblazer for Iranian women in sports.

/MNA/

Iran is the world’s second-biggest producer of dates, according to a local official. Noting that 1.3 million tons of dates were produced in the country in the last Iranian year (March 2022-23), Mohsen Rashid Farrokhi, chairman of the National Date Association of Iran, said 20-30% of the output is exported every year, Finacial Tribune reported.

He put last year’s exports at $400 million, adding that the country has the capacity to increase the figure to $1 billion.

“Among our 75 export destinations, the US and China have the lion’s share,” he said.

The official noted that per capita consumption is estimated at around 8 kilograms per year, adding that date production and related industries have created 1.5 million jobs in Iran directly and 4 million jobs indirectly.

According to Farrokhi, about 500 types of dates are grown in Iran, of which 18 are exported.

Although Egypt is the world’s biggest producer, Saudi Arabia is Iran’s major rival in the global date market. /MNA/

Written and directed by Rachel Safadel, the Iranian half-length film “Wound of Shadow” won a special prize at the International Brightlight Film Festival in Los Angeles.

Having a social theme about children’s problems, “Wound of Shadow” was filmed in Tehran last winter and will be screened soon.

Haniyeh Khosravani, Shahin Zargar, Mehri Arman, Rahim Safadel, and Parmis Tarkhorani are among cast members.

International Brightlight Film Festival – Hollywood – The festival’s goal is to introduce and reward independent filmmakers from all over the world and become a tool to open the way in the cinema industry. In order to encourage participants to trust themselves more, we offer prizes for the best work. / MNA/

The officials of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) said Tuesday that given the fact that Iran’s nuclear program is locally developed and no threat against the country’s nuclear facilities makes sense.

Considering the fact that Iran’s nuclear industry and nuclear capabilities are indigenously developed, any threat against our country’s nuclear industry is completely meaningless,” Kamalvandi said at the gathering of the heads of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s missions outside the country held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ compound on Tuesday.

“The nuclear industry acts as a driving force in different other industries and is not limited to a specific field,” the AEOI spokesman added.

Sepaking in the same meeting, the AEOI chairman Mohammad Eslami said that “Iran’s nuclear power cannot be denied.”

Eslami added that “Today, the entire cycle nuclear fuel process has become completely indigenous inside the country.”

MNA/

Iranian defense ministry unveiled the latest model of ballistic missiles dubbed “Khorramshahr-4 long range strategic missile” in a ceremony on Thursday morning in the presence of defense minister.

The unveiling ceremony was held on the anniversary of Liberation of Khorramshahr city from Western-backed Saddam Ba’athist regime in 1982.

The Khorramshahr missile is one of the most advanced missiles designed by the experts of the Aerospace Organization of defense ministry, which has a range of 2,000 km and is equipped with a high-explosive warhead weighing 1,500 kg.

To create tactical capabilities, this missile is equipped with one of the most advanced liquid fuel engines and the engine is placed in the fuel tank, which has reduced the length of the missile to about 13 meters.

This missile is the latest advanced version of Khorramshahr, one of the types of point-blank missiles without the need for guidance in the final phase.

Iran unveils new variant of Khorramshahr ballistic missile

The Khorramshahr-4 missile is equipped with a navigation aid system and is capable of carrying a heavy warhead.

The high speed of the warhead hitting the target makes the enemy’s defense systems unable to detect and intercept and take action to destroy it.

This missile also uses active phase guidance and control, middle phase guidance and control.

The difference between this missile and its previous variants is the accuracy of targeting in the middle phase (flying above the atmosphere). /MNA/

Iranian para shooter Nasrin Shahi claimed a gold medal in the P2 – Women’s 10m Air Pistol SH1 of the 2023 World Shooting Para Sport (WSPS) World Cup on Saturday.She finished in the first place with 239.6 points.

French shooter Gaelle Edon came second with 237.1 points and the bronze medal went to Rubina Francis from India.

Faezeh Ahmadi from Iran also finished fourth in the event.

As many as 226 shooters from 41 nations are fighting out for the top places and quotas in Changwon, South Korea.

The competition serves as qualifiers for the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.

MNA/

The Iranian short drama “Gladiators” has won awards in four categories, including best screenplay, at the fifth edition of the Aprilia Film Festival in Italy.

Written and directed by Maryam Rahimi, the film also won the Rotary Club Prize and the award for best editing by Sepehr Jahangin.

In addition, the award for best actor was given to Sam Khoshnud for his portrayal of Ali, who must pay a debt to prevent the early marriage of his sister Narges.

The story takes its cue from the sad reality in many countries of the world, including Iran, set of the film, to the detriment of children: precocious workers, victims of arranged marriages often for money, members of disadvantaged families who do not protect them and who they often expose them to violence and exploitation.

The closing ceremony of the Aprilia Film Festival was held on May 10 as the Italian short drama “Closed to the Light” was named the best film.

Directed and written by Nicola Piovesan, the film freezes in time the terrible tragedy of an execution that took place in Italy in the summer of 1944, to the detriment of innocent peasants. An articulated long shot in which everything is still and everything changes.

Rui Diaz won the award for best cinematographer for his collaboration in this film.

The award for best documentary was given to an Italian short, “The Heart of the Matter”, directed by Sonia Iacobone.

In this film, days before an important referendum, the community of a small town must decide whether they continue with the scientific research of the hazelnut of the elixir of life or calling everything off and simply trust nature.

“Rider” by Italian director Andrea Russo was selected as best student film.

A rider delivers a package containing a piece of a dead body to a lady, an investigation will begin to discover the culprit of the crime. The protagonists will recount the events of that night a year later, through the testimonies of three different points of view, we will retrace the events related to the discovery of a package, delving into the mystery surrounding the riders’ work.

Russo was also picked as best director for the film. Several other films were also awarded in the side sections of the festival. /T.T/

By the end of the first Iranian calendar month Farvardin (April 20), 346 companies have been active in the field of nanotechnology in the country. The companies produced 1,911 products and 241 pieces of equipment, supplying them to the market, IRNA reported.

According to the latest statistics, 281 Iranian companies are active in the field of manufacturing nanotechnology products and 65 companies are active in the field of manufacturing nanotechnology equipment.

On November 28, 2022, President Ebrahim Raisi declared the “National Document for the Development of Nano Science and Technology”.

The document, consisting of 7 articles, was approved by the Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution on November 15.

Policy making and planning for progress in nanotechnology started in 2003 with the formation of a special headquarters for the development of nanotechnology, and accelerated with the approval of the first 10-year document for the development of nanotechnology entitled “Future Strategy Document”.

In this document, Iran was targeted to be among the top 15 nanotechnology countries in the world and aimed to generate wealth and improve people’s lives. The general approach of the first ten-year document was the training of human resources and the provision of infrastructure for the development and commercialization of technology.

In order to continue the nanotechnology progress, the upcoming national document has been compiled with new goals and approaches such as being a reference in science and technology, industrialization, maximum impact of nanotechnology in priority industrial areas, and entry of nano products into the global markets and the promotion of people’s lives.

By 2033, the advancements of nanotechnology in Iran will improve the quality of life and the production of wealth. The country moves towards global authority in science and nanotechnology by producing innovative products while having a stable place in the market of other countries.

General goals are improving the scientific position and promoting the authority of the country in science and nanotechnology, promotion of innovation based on novel technologies with high economic and social impact, upgrading existing industries by nanotechnology, stable export and promotion of Iranian nano products in regional and global markets, enhancing the effectiveness of nanotechnology in improving the quality of life and social impact.

Priority industrial areas in the national document are consisting of water and environment, energy, agriculture, health, and construction

One of the industries that have experienced good growth in Iran in recent years, proving the country’s scientific development, is the nanotechnology industry, a subject area that has brought Iran to the world’s fourth place.

Over the Iranian calendar year 1400 (March 2021-March 2022), the total sale of Iranian nanoproducts has been equal to 115 trillion rials (nearly $230 million).

The expansion of nanotechnology export programs in recent years and the establishment of bases for exporting nanotechnology products to China, India, Indonesia, Syria, Turkey, and Iraq have provided the opportunity for the entry of Iranian nanotechnology goods, equipment, and services into global markets.

Some 42 percent of the products in this field are related to construction, more than 17 percent to the field of oil, gas, and petrochemicals, 13 percent to the field of automobiles, and over 10 percent to the field of optoelectronics.

Iran’s ranking in nanotechnology articles citation in 2019 has significantly improved compared to 2018, as it moved 26 levels higher, according to StatNano’s statistics collected from the WoS database.

Based on a report Nanotechnology Publications report, Iran ranked 38 worldwide for the average number of times the nano-articles have been cited in the Journal Citation Reports in 2019, while in 2018, it was placed 64. It also ranked 4th in terms of the number of nano-article publications. /T.T/