The Premiere of the Animated Film “Hadis” Took Place at YARAT

On June 1, 2023, on International Children’s Day, the national premiere of the short animated film “Hadis” took place at the YARAT Contemporary Art Space.

Directed by Nazrin Aghamaliyeva, “Hadis” follows a young woman who decides to fight for justice in an unjust world ruled symbolically by crows.

The animated short film “Hadis” is dedicated to the memory of 22-year-old Azerbaijani Turk, Hadis Najafi, and to all those fighting against gender, ethnic, and cultural discrimination in Iran. Najafi was murdered by Iranian security forces on September 21, 2022, and is now revered as a symbol of Azerbaijani resistance and ethnic struggle in Iran.

Mugham was played at the beginning of the event. Tar performer Afgan Iskenderov, singer Mireli Sarizade, and kamancha player Farid Babayev performed the songs “Ayrılıq” (Separation) and “Qaragilə” (Bilberry) for the audience.

After the film screening, a Q&A session with the creative team took place. Director Nazrin Aghamaliyeva, screenwriter Ismail Iman, storyboard artist Kubra Binnetova, graphic designer Seymur Allahyarli, and representative of the Azerbaijan Cultural Society of Northern California, Rajab Hasanbayli, answered the audience’s questions.

Notably, “Hadis” has been selected for the Official Selection of the Annecy International Animation Film Festival. The Annecy festival is recognized as the world’s largest and leading animation festival. In this year’s competition, “Hadis” was selected from among 3300 films from 112 countries. It should be noted that only 71 films were selected for the “Short films” category. Being selected for the Official Selection at Annecy is a significant achievement for the Azerbaijani film industry.

The producer of the film is Rashid Agamaliyev, the consultant is Masud Panahi, the lead animator is Andrea Szelesová, the editor is Jorge Sánchez Calderón, the composer is Ondřej Zavadil, the voice actor is Zohre Karimi, and the text editor is Rafig Mammadli. The music of the famous Azerbaijani musician Sevda Alekbarzadeh is part of the film’s score.

The film “Hadis” is produced by ANIMAFILM Studio with financial and idea support from the Azerbaijan Cultural Society of Northern California. The Azerbaijan Animation Association, Akinchi platform, and Skwigly Animation Magazine provided media support for the film.