TEHRAN -- A new Iranian animated series is revisiting the history of Hormuz Island and the campaign that ended Portuguese control of the island in the early 17th century.
Battle of Hormuz, directed and produced by Amir Kasavandi, is currently in production at Saba Animation Center. The 3D animated series is planned as 26 episodes, each running 15 minutes.
The story traces more than a century of Portuguese presence on Hormuz and focuses on the conflict that culminated in the island’s liberation under Shah Abbas I. The Safavid ruler orders his commander Imam-Qoli Khan to campaign against Portuguese positions along Iran’s southern coast.
The central character is a fictional 13-year-old boy named Hormuz, who becomes involved in the struggle against the occupying forces. Historical figures and events are combined with fictional characters to create an adventure aimed at a younger audience.
According to director and producer Kasavandi, the series deliberately draws parallels between the political and social circumstances of the period and contemporary Iran. The production uses its historical setting to explore themes of resistance, popular mobilization and national solidarity.
One example appears in the series’ 10th episode, in which a character named Amer describes himself as a volunteer ready to sacrifice himself in a letter to Imam-Qoli Khan. The final two episodes depict a popular mobilization led by a Kurdish officer