3 Awards at the Health Festival for the Independent Short Film Support Platform

The award for Best Documentary, Best Fiction Film, and the Professor Sadeghi Special Award in the documentary section of the Health Festival were presented to films represented by the Independent Short Film Support Platform.
According to the Independent Short Film Support Platform, at the closing ceremony of the First National Health Film and Photo Festival, held at Simorgh Cultural Center in the city of Neyshabur, three films out of the seven platform-supported films that had made it into the festival’s film competition section won awards.
In the documentary section, A Gift Called Life, directed by Shermin Mojtahedzadeh and Majid Saeedi, won the award for Best Documentary of the festival. In addition, the Professor Sadeghi Special Award in the documentary category was presented to The Disheveled Hair of the Earth, directed by Mehdi Yarmohammadi.
In the fiction section, the short film Early Tomorrow Morning, directed by Azam Najafian, won the award for Best Fiction Film of the festival.
Before receiving his award, Mehdi Yarmohammadi said:
“First of all, I would like to thank the Ministry of Health and Medical Education for designing and implementing the national health insurance program, because after ten years of membership in the Iranian House of Cinema, this is the first year that I have been able to use a health insurance booklet.”
Speaking about his film, he added:
“My film is about a village in western Iran that was subjected to a chemical attack by the Iraqi regime four days after Resolution 598 was accepted, during peacetime and while the villagers were celebrating Eid al-Adha. Even after all these years, the people of this village continue to suffer from many hardships and difficulties.”
He continued:
“I dedicate this award, like the previous awards won by this film, as a contribution toward the medical treatment costs of several cancer patients and suffering residents of this village. I hope this gesture serves as a reminder and a wake-up call to the responsible authorities to address the condition of the people living there.”
At the end of his speech, he asked the representative of the Ministry of Health and Medical Education to review the medical commission’s assessment process regarding the villagers who claim to have been affected by chemical weapons, if possible.
While accepting her award, Shermin Mojtahedzadeh paid tribute to her late actress friend Asal Badiee, whose organ donation drew serious public attention to the issue. She expressed hope that this mindset and practice would become more deeply rooted in the country’s culture.
Winners of the First National Health Film and Photo Festival were as follows:
Documentary Film Section
First Place: A Gift Called Life — Shermin Mojtahedzadeh and Majid Saeedi
Second Place: The Wound — Seyed Mehdi Mousavi
Third Place: Allah Yar — Ahmad Nikfarjam
Professor Sadeghi Special Award: The Disheveled Tress of the Earth — Mehdi Yarmohammadi
Fiction Film Section
First Place: Early Tomorrow Morning — Azam Najafian
Second Place: A Little More Beautiful — Jalal Yazdani
Third Place: Amir’s Room — Behnam Darvishpour
Professor Sadeghi Special Award: At Eighty Years Old — Reza Jamali
Photography Section
First Place: Ehsan Kamali
Second Place: Seyed Ali Hosseini Far
Third Place: Hadi Azarpour
Professor Sadeghi Special Award: Jalal Shams Azaran
It should be noted that the First National Health Film and Photo Festival was organized by the Neyshabur Faculty of Medical Sciences and Health Services with the aim of promoting public awareness of health issues and advancing public health concepts.