Poetic journey in found footage through the inner world of a former Iranian refugee. From the farewell to her parents to her arrival in her newfound country and her altered identity.
The Day I Disappeared is an unconventional and very personal film essay about immigration that blends fact and fiction. In 1989, filmmaker and fine artist Atousa Ghiasabadi fled Iran, where she studied physics at Teheran University. Via tortuous ways, she finally ended up in the Netherlands. Incorporating found footage and staged scenes, she reconstructs the period when she left her parents and sister and travelled to unknown Europe, changed into a stranger and transformed her identity.
In interior monologues, Ghiasabadi tells in Farsi what she felt and thought. Gradually, a universal image arises of the refugee fleeing his or her country for another or better life. The scenes have been edited to the rhythm of ancient Persian poetry. Scenes in which the filmmaker appears as a dancer enhance the feeling of alienation. The 8mm and 16mm images occasionally take the spectator to a dreamy fairytale world, just as the stranger in a strange land must feel like all the time.
In interior monologues, Ghiasabadi tells in Farsi what she felt and thought. Gradually, a universal image arises of the refugee fleeing his or her country for another or better life. The scenes have been edited to the rhythm of ancient Persian poetry. Scenes in which the filmmaker appears as a dancer enhance the feeling of alienation. The 8mm and 16mm images occasionally take the spectator to a dreamy fairytale world, just as the stranger in a strange land must feel like all the time.
Credits
Director
Producer
Executive producer
Scenario
Camera
Set geluid
Sound editing
Sound Design
Montage
Production company
A Bandeh
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