Synopsis

Through rotoscoping animation, Ali Soozandeh presents a brilliantly crafted and transgressive insight into society in underground Tehran. When prostitute and single mum Pari moves in to an apartment with her mute son, she unintentionally befriends her new neighbour Sara. Sara is a middle class mullah who seemingly has a perfect family life but who too hides her own secrets; and so the company of Pari is a welcome escape. The lives of the two women become further intertwined with that of a young musician and the girl for whom he is trying to raise money for an illegal operation following a night they spent together in a club. As stories of sex, drugs and corruption unravel, the lives of the unlikely allies prove more alike than they think. Stylistically reminiscent of Waltz with Bashir, Persepolis and In Between, Tehran Taboo provides an insightful and eye opening journey into the Taboo world of underground Tehran.