Being the first anything is a point of pride, but also a burden. Sara Shahverdi has carved her own path through a deeply conservative village in rural Iran. An experienced midwife who has delivered more than 400 babies, she has always done what is not permitted of women: to ride a motorcycle in public, to get a divorce and to live alone. Now she has taken on another herculean task: to become the first female councillor to be elected in this part of the country.
Staying close to its subject, Sara Khaki and Mohammadreza Eyni’s dynamic documentary captures the full force of Shahverdi’s formidable personality. An early scene shows her barging into the home of her brothers, demanding they return the rights of land inheritance to her sisters. The film expands from Shahverdi’s private issues to take in the full scope of patriarchal oppression in her community. Here, schoolgirls as young as 12 are forced into marriage, divorce is nearly impossible to obtain, and married women have little legal protection. Shahverdi’s resounding election victory is a beacon of hope, but even her celebrations are overshadowed by misogyny. Her male supporters can dance in the streets, while women have to film the revelries through a barred window.
As councilwoman, Shahverdi brings stunning changes to the village; however, her support of women and girls also incites hateful accusations about her sexuality that land her in court. Through these trials and tribulations, and moving between moods of jubilation and doubt, the documentary evocatively conveys her sisyphean exhaustion, where every step of progress is undone by new setbacks. While we might want to hear more about the specific cultural geography of the Azeri Turk community to which Shahverdi belongs, this remains a thought-provoking portrait of an extraordinary spirit.
• Cutting Through Rocks is at Bertha DocHouse, London, from 17 October.
