SYNOPSIS
Set in the heart of the Middle Eastern community in Vancouver, Canada, Kayan is an intricate story of betrayal, belonging and love in all its complicated and often paradoxical glory. Hanin, a strong- minded Lebanese woman, tries her best to keep Kayan, her struggling restaurant, afloat. With a failed marriage, two teenage daughters, a demanding relationship with a younger man and an array of people that rely on her, Hanin has no choice but to conjure up new ways to make money and persevere. Things take a twisted turn as the line between her personal and professional life blurs and some of her customers turn out to be more than they seem.
Awards
New Currents Award | Busan IFF, South Korea, 2012
Best Actress Award | Cinemanila IFF, Philippines, 2012
CAST & CREW
Maryan Najafi
Director
Producer(s)
Amir Naderi, Maryam Najafi
Script
Maryam Najafi
Director of Photography
Farhad Saba
Production designer
Nima Nafei
Music by
Pirouz Ebadypour, Sadaf Amini-Taymaz Saba
Sound
Ivan Ignjatovic, Marc Benoit, Taymaz Saba
Edit
Maryam Najafi, Ramin San
Cast
Oula Hamadeh, Seira Emami, Mohammed Al Saadi, Seyhan Demir
Production company(ies)
Mehr Media Inc.
Maryan Najafi
Currently based in Vancouver, Canada, Najafi has tried her hands at different genres in film, her one true passion. She received her BA in Film Studies at the University of British Columbia in 2005, then went on to earn an MFA in Motion Pictures and Television at the Academy of Art University (AAU) in San Francisco, USA in 2010. She has worked as a producer and director in Canada, Spain and the Middle East. She co-produced the 2010 film The Neighbor (Dir: Naghmeh Shirkhan) that has been featured in prominent IFFs and has won numerous awards. She runs Mehr Studio and has written four feature screenplays. Kayan is her debut feature film as a director.
Filmography
Ordinary (2008 short), Hairbound (2010 short), Kayan (2012).
