The Sealed Soil + The House is Black (15) + Introduction
Masterpieces of the Iranian New Wave
The two female-directed films that bookend Iranian New Wave, marking the beginning and final years of the movement, are now claimed as some of the greatest films of their time.
Among the very few feature and documentary films directed by women in Iran before the 1979 revolution, the only two that exist in complete form are poet Forough Farrokhzad’s The House Is Black – a short documentary about fighting leprosy that became one of the first international successes of the Iranian New Wave – and Marva Nabili’s recently rediscovered The Sealed Soil, a restrained rebellion against patriarchy shot in Iran shortly before the revolution.
Tragically, both filmmakers’ careers were interrupted: Farrokhzad died in 1967, at the age of 32, and Nabili moved to the United States. If The House Is Black merges poetry and cinema like no other film, The Sealed Soil employs long shots and a static camera, with Nabili citing Persian miniature art and director Robert Bresson as influences. In both cases, the results are astonishing.
Please note: The Sealed Soil includes a brief scene with a depiction of animal cruelty.
Ticket prices
Students £11
Unwaged £11
Over 60s £11
Under 18s £6
Wheelchair spaces, free companion seats may now be booked online.
Please select the relevant preferences on the access registration page during your booking, so we can provide you with the correct information and discounts.
Booking a wheelchair space
Select a seat displaying the wheelchair user icon and then select 'wheelchair user' ticket type. The ticket will be priced at the lowest price for that event. If you need an essential companion, please select the E icon next to the wheelchair space you have selected.
Booking essential companion tickets
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Booking fees
£1.50 booking fee per online/phone transaction.
No fee when tickets are booked in person.
Booking fees are per transaction and not per ticket. If your booking contains several events the highest booking fee will apply. The booking fee may be reduced on certain events. Members do not pay booking fees.
Programme
The Sealed Soil (Khak-e sar bé mohr)
Chronicling the repetitive and repressed life of Roo-Bekheir, a young woman in a poor village in southwest Iran, The Sealed Soil portrays her quiet resistance to a forced marriage. A formally rigorous, if emotionally distanced, critique of patriarchy and the superficial reforms of Iranian agricultural life, the film captures the tensions that contributed to the 1979 revolution.
1977 Iran dir Marva Nabili 90 mins, in Persian with English subtitles
The House is Black (Khaneh siah ast)
Set in an enclosed community for people affected by leprosy in northwest Iran, it is a dialogue between the passions of the poet (Farrokhzad) and the voice of reason (Ebrahim Golestan, also the film’s producer). It opens with a blank screen, gradually drawing viewers into an unwatchable world that transforms, through the miracle of poetry, into the sublime.
1962 Iran dir Forough Farrokhzad 20 mins, in Persian with English subtitles
Cinema 1
Location
Barbican Cinema 1 is located within the main Barbican building on Level -2. Head to Level G and walk towards the Lakeside Terrace where you’ll find stairs and lifts to take you down to the venue floor.
Address
Barbican Centre
Silk Street, London
EC2Y 8DS
Public transport
The Barbican is widely accessible by bus, tube, train and by foot or bicycle. Plan your journey and find more route information in ‘Your Visit’ or book your car parking space in advance.
We’ve plenty of places for you to relax and replenish, from coffee and cake to wood-fired pizzas and full pre-theatre menus
Access
Level access from the Pit floor foyer only to the two boxes (see Mobility below). All other seats lead off stepped aisles.
Mobility
Two boxes at the rear of the auditorium each have space for one wheelchair user and a companion. Please book early and ask for these seats.
Assistance dogs
Assistance dogs may be taken into the cinema – please tell us when booking, to ensure your seat has enough space. If you prefer, you may leave your dog with a member of the foyer staff during the performance.
Hearing facility
There is an induction loop in the auditorium. You can use this by adjusting your hearing aid to the ‘T’ setting.
For more access information, please visit our Accessibility section.
