The elderly caretaker of a remote morgue possesses an impeccable memory for everything but names. He passes his days showing corpses to those searching for their lost ones and tending to his beloved plants. When protest in a nearby city breaks out and the militia covertly raid the morgue to hide civilian casualties, he discovers the body of an unknown young woman. Evoking memories of personal loss, he embarks on a magical odyssey to give her a proper burial with the help of a mystic gravedigger who collects stories of the dead, an old woman searching for her long-lost daughter, and a hearse driver tormented by his past.
Director : Alireza Khatami
Written by : Alireza Khatami
Length : 92 min | Spanish
Original title: Los Versos del Olvido
French title : Les Versets de l’Oubli
Cast : Juan Margallo, Manuel Moron, Itziar Aizpuru, Tomas Del Estal
Producers :
House on Fire (France) – Vincent Wang, Fred Bellaïche, Dominique Welinski
Co-Producers :
Endorphine Production (Germany) – Fabian Massah, Catharina Schreckenberg
Lemming Film (Netherlands) – Leontine Petit, Eva Eissenloeffel, Joost de Vries
Quijote Films (Chile) – Giancarlo Nasi
DoP: Antoine Heberlé
Sound : Miroslav Babic
International sales: Urban Distribution International
With the support of:
Media Development
CNC – Aide aux Cinémas du Monde
Fondation Gan
Eurimages
MDM
Ezef
Hubert Bals Fund Development / Plus / Europe
Selections and awards:
Venice Film Festival 2017 : Orizzonti Award for Best Screenplay / FIPRESCI Award
Toronto Film Festival 2017: Discovery Section