Iranian Documentary ‘As I Lay Dying’ To Screen In IDFA 2025’s Opening Shorts Program
Amsterdam, 13–23 November 2025
I was glad to see that As I Lay Dying, the new short documentary by Pegah Ahangarani and Mohammadreza Farzad, has been selected for the IDFA Competition for Short Documentary and will screen as part of the section’s opening program in Amsterdam.

The 15-minute film revisits the 2009 Green Movement protests in Tehran through personal footage and quiet reflection. It captures both the collective energy of those days and the personal silence that followed.
I’ve been following IDFA’s announcements closely this year; the festival features nearly 250 films from 76 countries, and this Iranian presence in the opening lineup of the shorts competition feels particularly meaningful.
The program also includes Intersecting Memory by Shayma’ Awawdeh from Palestine and happiness by Turkish filmmaker Firat Yücel.
Tickets will be available from 29 October at noon, with full screening details announced a few days earlier on festival.idfa.nl.


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