''Shayda'' is a 2023 Australian

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

film written, directed and co-produced by Noora Niasari. The film stars

Zar Amir Ebrahimi Zahra Amir Ebrahimi (; born 9 July 1981), known professionally as Zar Amir Ebrahimi (, ), is an Iranian and French actress, producer and director. She rose to international prominence for her performance as journalist Arezoo Rahimi in the crime ...

Osamah Sami Osamah Sami is an Australian stage and screen actor, writer, and stand-up comedian, born in Iran of Iraqi origin. He is known for his book ''Good Muslim Boy'', and the film ''Ali's Wedding''. ''Good Muslim Boy'', was the winner of the 2016 ...

, Mojean Aria, Jillian Nguyen, Rina Mousavi, Selina Zahednia, and

Leah Purcell Leah Maree Purcell (born 14 August 1970) is an Aboriginal Australian stage and film actress, playwright, film director, and novelist. She made her film debut in 1999, appearing in Paul Fenech's ''Somewhere in the Darkness'', which led to rol ...

. The story follows an Iranian immigrant woman in Australia who is raising her young daughter as the two live in a

women's shelter A women's shelter, also known as a women's refuge and battered women's shelter, is a place of temporary protection and support for women escaping domestic violence and intimate partner violence of all forms. The term is also frequently used to ...

. The film had its world premiere at the

2023 Sundance Film Festival The 2023 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 19 to 29, 2023. The first lineup of competition films was announced on December 7, 2022. Films U.S. Dramatic Competition * '' The Accidental Getaway Driver'', directed by Sing J. Lee ...

on 19 January 2023, and was released in Australia on 5 October 2023. It was selected as the Australian entry for the Best International Feature Film category for the 2024 Academy Awards.

Plot

Inspired by Niasari's childhood experiences, the story follows an Iranian immigrant woman in Australia who is raising her young daughter as the two live in a

, while also attempting to divorce from her abusive husband. It takes place during the

Nowruz Nowruz (, , () , () , () , () , Kurdish language, Kurdish: () , () , () , () , , , , () , , ) is the Iranian or Persian New Year. Historically, it has been observed by Iranian peoples, but is now celebrated by many ...

(Persian New Year) holiday period, sometime in the 1990s.

Cast

The cast includes: *

as Shayda * Selina Zahednia as Mona *

as Hossein *

as Joyce * Mojean Aria as Farhad * Jillian Nguyen as Vi * Rina Mousavi as Elly * Eve Morey as Lara *

Lucinda Armstrong Hall Lucinda Armstrong Hall is an Australian actress. She is noted for her recurring television role as Holly Hoyland in ''Neighbours'' from 2013 to 2014 and 2017 to 2018 and she returned in 2023 as a series regular. She is also known for her perform ...

as Renee * Bev Killick as Cathy * Jerome Meyer as Pierre

Release

''Shayda'' had its World Premiere at the

on 19 January 2023, where it won the Audience Award in the World Cinema Dramatic competition. In February 2023,

Sony Pictures Classics Sony Pictures Classics Inc. is an American arthouse film production and distribution company that is a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment. It was founded in 1992 by former Orion Classics heads Michael Barker, Tom Bernard and Marcie Bloo ...

acquired distribution rights to the film for North and Latin America, the Benelux, Eastern Europe, Portugal, the Middle East and Turkey. In August 2023, it was screened as the opening film in the

Melbourne International Film Festival The Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) is an annual film festival held over three weeks in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It was founded in 1952 and is one of the oldest film festivals in the world following the founding of the Venic ...

for its Australian premiere, and it closed the

Locarno Film Festival The Locarno International Film Festival is a major international film festival, held annually in Locarno, Switzerland. Founded in 1946, the festival screens films in various competitive and non-competitive sections, including feature-length narr ...

in Switzerland. It is also scheduled for screening at the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...

in September. It was also invited at the

28th Busan International Film Festival The 28th Busan International Film Festival () opened on October 4 at the Busan Cinema Center in Busan, South Korea. Song Kang-ho of ''Parasite (2019 film), Parasite'' fame welcomed filmmakers as host of the festival, while Park Eun-bin acted as ...

in 'Flash Forward' section and was screened on 8 October 2023. The film was selected in country focus section 'Best of Contemporary Australian Cinema' at the

29th Kolkata International Film Festival The 29th Kolkata International Film Festival began on 5 December 2023 at Netaji Indoor Stadium, in Kolkata, India. A 1963 romantic comedy Bengali film ''Deya Neya'' by Sunil Bannerjee opened the festival, which screened 219 films from 39 countr ...

held from 5 December to 12 December 2023. It was scheduled to be released in cinemas in Australia by Madman Films on 28 September 2023, before it was released by a week later on 5 October 2023. The film is scheduled to be released by

Vertigo Releasing Vertigo Films is a British independent TV and Film production company founded in 2002 by Allan Niblo and James Richardson and joined a few years later by current CEO and partner, Jane Moore. The company has produced and distributed over 50 fe ...

in the United Kingdom on 8 March 2024. It was released in the United States on 1 March 2024.

Reception

Critical response

''Shayda'' was selected, on 30 August 2023, as the Australian entry to the Best International Feature Film category for the

2024 Academy Awards 2024 Academy Awards may refer to: * 96th Academy Awards, the Academy Awards ceremony that took place in 2024, honoring the best in film for 2023 * 97th Academy Awards The 97th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture ...

in the United States.

Accolades

''Shayda'' won the CinefestOZ Film Prize

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

in September 2023, worth . The prize is the largest cash film prize in Australia, and one of the largest in the world.

References

External links

* * {{Australian submission for Academy Awards 2023 films Australian drama films 2023 drama films 2020s Persian-language films 2020s English-language films 2020s Australian films HanWay Films films Sundance Film Festival award–winning films Sony Pictures Classics films