Nava
Short Film Program
Iran
Schedule
Nov. 15, 2026 | 12:00 PM
Synopsis:
Nava, a celebrated young Iranian singer, returns home hoping to reconnect with her father. But when her passport is confiscated, she is given just 24 hours to decide whether to leave Iran forever or risk everything for her art and her people.
Director
Dena Rassam
Dena Rassam is an Iranian filmmaker, producer, and screenwriter who began her career as a child actress before earning a degree in marketing in New Zealand and returning to Iran to train in directing and screenwriting. The daughter of acclaimed director Masoud Rassam, she gained international acclaim producing and distributing the semi-autobiographical short Tattoo (2019), which won the Crystal Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival and earned Oscar-qualifying honors. In 2026, Rassam made her directorial debut with Nava, an Academy Award®-qualifying short that premiered at the San Francisco International Film Festival and won First Prize at the Athens International Film and Video Festival. Alongside her creative projects, she has actively promoted contemporary Iranian cinema internationally by distributing acclaimed short films like Daily Massacre in Tehran, Deer, and Sheep.