"I think cinema has a magical power. For me, this lies in the specific situation of the viewer: seated and receptive. We can exteriorize an emotion in an even greater way than on the psychoanalyst's couch, detaching ourselves from everything that surrounds us."
Abbas Kiarostami is one of the key figures of the Iranian New Wave. An interdisciplinary artist, he is at once a screenwriter, editor, artistic director, producer, and director. But he is also a poet, photographer, painter, illustrator, and graphic designer. Since the 1970s, Kiarostami has attached his name to more than forty films, including shorts, documentaries, and even dramas. Kiarostami is known for casting children as the protagonists of narrative-style documentaries, as well as innovations in directing. He uses contemporary Iranian poetry in the dialogues, titles, and themes of his films.