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Projects

Hardsub

Amir, an immigrant in Ukraine, faces a crisis: stay, return home, or follow his daughter to Europe.

synopsis

Amir (34), an Azerbaijani migrant in Ukraine, works as a news editor and freelance translator for law enforcement. Struggling to stay connected with his daughter, Amir drifts through parties and one-night stands, while the Russian invasion of Ukraine looms. His ex-wife and daughter decide to flee to Germany, but Amir hesitates, torn by the thought of abandoning his chosen home. During a translation assignment, he meets Sahib (20), a young Azerbaijani drug dealer caught in a police case. Amir realises Sahib is being framed and is drawn into a complex world he left behind – Kyiv’s Azerbaijani diaspora. Navigating these connections forces Amir to confront his past. Also, Amir works on subtitling for Parajanov’s film Ashik-Kerib. This task becomes a challenge and a reflection on returning to the beginning of his migrant journey. His love for his daughter and desire to preserve his identity leads him to accept his path and destiny as Ashik-Kerib, which translates to “foreigner” and “wanderer”.

Director’statement

This project is deeply personal, as I had to emigrate for a second time in my life. Hardsub reflects my journey, exploring themes of displacement, cultural assimilation and identity. As a director, I feel a responsibility to convey these emotions in my debut feature. The film questions what “home” truly means while following a protagonist grappling with loss and the need for love. My vision combines long static shots and panoramic views, transitioning to observation shots. The style will blend docufiction, using mixed visual mediums and both professional and non-professional actors. The multicultural soundscape combined with subtle political layers is very important, especially because the story takes place a week before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Characters develop through relationships. Post-erotic and anti-erotic scenes emphasise absence of connection over desire. Ultimately, the film is about memory, loss, and the search for home.

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