The International Women’s Film Festival-Herat launched its first edition, jointly organised by Armanshahr Foundation and Roya Film House at the historical Citadel of Herat in 2013.
The Festival has the goal of promoting and encouraging filmmakers concerned with the topics of women and gender. In addition, it aims to display problems, demands and advances of women on the silver screen. It endeavours to make those issues a public concern, which could open many ways for women.
This is an international festival, which provides an opportunity for the young filmmakers of Afghanistan to establish contact with cinema activists in other countries and benefit from their experiences. Thus, it can attract the attention of international filmmakers to the grave conditions of women in Afghanistan.
In its first edition, the Festival hosted more than 1500 citizens of Herat who watched the films, which more than 100 national and international media covered. The second edition of the Festival was held in 2014. It was host to guests from Italy, India, Britain, Iran and Tajikistan as well as from across Afghanistan. It was enthusiastically received by more than 10,000 citizens of Herat.
Educational workshops were also organised during both editions of the Festival. The participants in the 2nd Festival’s workshop made two short films entitled “A day of photography” and “Story of Ms Angel”, which were screened at the closing ceremony.
Unlike the 1st Festival, the 2nd Festival had a competition section and the Festival’s statue was awarded to selected film makers in two national and international categories.
On the fringe of the Festival, there were also other cultural programs, e.g. concert of Herat’s local music, pop music concert, and visits to ancient sites.
The Festival is due to be held in Herat every year. Illustrated report of the first Festival can be accessed here and of the second Festival here.
International Simorgh Peace Award
Armanshahr Foundation/OPEN ASIA established the International Simorgh Peace Award in 2009 with the goal of encouraging artists who endeavour for a sustainable peace and combating violence and militarism.
More than 1,000 poems and stories were received for the first edition of the Simorgh Peace Award and a number of poets and writers were awarded the azure Simorgh peace statute. In the second edition, the Simorgh peace statutes were awarded to selected independent publishers of Afghanistan.
The awards ceremonies of both first and second edition were held in the National Library of Tajikistan in Dushanbe. The National Library of Tajikistan also received the award for providing a large and safe house for books in the region. Tajikistan’s Ministry of Culture was awarded the statute in recognition of its publishing activities.
The third edition of Simorgh Peace Award aimed to appreciate artists involved in the field of music. Its closing ceremony coincided with the Human Rights Week in Kabul in 2014, during whichrecipients of the azure Simorgh peace statutes were announced.
Simorgh peace statutes are awarded once every 30 months.
