TEHRAN — Iranian short film “Hunter,” written, produced and directed by Amirhussein Mehmandoust, is ready for screening at the 38th International Film Festival for Children and Young Adults in Isfahan.
Produced by Soureh Young Film Center, the film follows Morad, a hard-of-hearing teenager from a rural village who is drawn into an unexpected incident in the mountains. What begins as a simple search develops into a tense encounter, as Morad faces a difficult situation and attempts to prove his abilities.
The cast includes Danial Faraji, Negar Babaei, Kamyab Hajinourouzi, Mahmoudreza Ferdowsi, Mehdi Bazdar and Yashar Karaji.
Mehmandoust said the idea for “Hunter” emerged during the 12-day war, following reports of an American F-35 fighter jet being shot down.
“I wrote the initial treatment after the news about the F-35,” he said. “I continued working on the screenplay until it reached a stage where it could be considered for production, but the necessary conditions were not available at that time.”
He later submitted the project to “Homeland Through My Eyes,” a call organized by Soureh Young Film Center, and the screenplay was approved for production. However, as the final script was being completed and production preparations were beginning, another conflict interrupted the project.
The story changed when, toward the end of the conflict, an American F-15 fighter jet was reported to have been shot down near Yasuj. According to Mehmandoust, the real-life incident closely resembled the events already written in his screenplay.
He subsequently traveled to Yasuj with team members Muhammad-Hussein Karimi and Ali Eghtesad. With support from Saeed Karimi, head of the Iranian Youth Cinema Society’s Yasuj office, they researched villages connected with the incident involving the aircraft and its pilot. The research resulted in a revised final screenplay, after which production began.
Mehmandoust said he knew the film would be challenging to produce and therefore sought experienced cinema professionals. He said the project ultimately brought together a strong production team.
His previous short films include “Catfish,” “The Silence of the World” and “The Heir.” His work has been presented at the 40th Tehran International Short Film Festival, the 42nd Fajr Film Festival, the 22nd Hafez Awards, the 14th Iranian Short Film Association Academy Awards, the 19th Image of the Year Film Festival and the ninth City Film Festival.
The crew includes cinematographer Vahid Ebrahimi, sound recordist Rashid Daneshmand, editor Muhammad-Hussein Karimi, makeup designer Omid Golzadeh, costume designer Saba Meraji, production designer Arman Mirbabaei, sound designer Erfan Hassanzadeh, composers Sepehr Enayatzadeh and Farmehar Enayatzadeh, visual-effects artist Muhammad Khanban, first assistant director Omid Taheri, production manager Abolfazl Khani, photographer Mozhgan Esfahaniyan, graphic designer Ali Eghtesad, 
script supervisor Elnaz Mirza, associate producer Muhammad-Hussein Karimi, supervisor Hussein Taheri and public relations officer Zahra Kordlou.
“Hunter” is a production of Soureh Young Film Center and will compete in the short-film section of the 38th International Film Festival for Children and Young Adults in Isfahan.