Dushanbe [Tajikistan], September 30 : 'Black Rabbit, White Rabbit', a mystery drama by Iranian filmmaker Shahram Mokri, has been selected to represent the country of Tajikistan in the best international feature film category at the Oscars, reported The Hollywood Reporter.
The news follows the film's International Film Festival of India - Vision Asian Award honour at the Busan International Film Festival.
The movie will next screen at the BFI London Film Festival and the Chicago International Film Festival.
The film, a co-production between Tajikistan and the United Arab Emirates, was made with the support of Tajikfilm in Tajikistan and produced in Tajik and Persian, reported The Hollywood Reporter.
The cast includes a group of prominent Tajik actors, namely Babak Karimi, Hasti Mohammai, Kibriyo Dilyobova, and Bezhan Davlyatov.
Mokri wrote the screenplay of the movie with Nasim Ahmadpour. The film is produced by Negar Eskandarfar.
"A suspicious film prop, a mysterious audition, a conspiratorial road incident and multiple rabbits are woven together in this bold and beguiling drama from Tajikistan," reads a synopsis of the movie.
"A film armourer suspects a fake firearm is real. An actor arrives on set demanding a role. A car crash victim fears her accident was deliberate. Three seemingly disparate stories weave into an enigmatic whole, with flowing, expertly choreographed takes, no small amount of droll humour and flashes of magic realism punctuating Iranian director Shahram Mokri's playful, subtly provocative meta-mystery," added synopsis as quoted by The Hollywood Reporter.
The DreamLab Films production is the fourth movie that Tajikistan has submitted for the Academy Awards. The Central Asian country has never been nominated in the past for Oscars, reported The Hollywood Reporter.
'Black Rabbit, White Rabbit' is Mokri's fourth feature film. His feature debut Fish & Cat (2013) won a special award in the Orizzonti (Horizons) section at the Venice Film Festival.
The director went on to direct Invasion (2017), which screened at the Berlin International Film Festival, followed by Careless Crime (2020), which screened at Venice and won the jury prize at the Chicago International Film Festival.
The 98th Oscars take place Sunday, March 15, 2026.
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