Being a hero doesn’t mean having the power to obtain and collect
Interview with Amir Mashhadi Abbas about DOUCH.
Two boys are competing in a bicycle race. Time and time again, Gholamreza and his classmate Karim challenge each other, racing their bikes along the railroad track. Gholamreza hardly stands a chance against his strong classmate, and moreover he does not even have a proper bike. He dreams of buying a shiny new bicycle, like the one his father promised him. That dream grows into a mission that tosses all his routines and puts the honour of his family at stake.
In DOUCH, a film about pushing your boundaries, director Amir Mashhadi Abbas takes his audience to a small town community. Like many Iranian films, DOUCH offers us a glimpse into village life. People living in the villages often have very different needs from those living in the cities. Their lives are defined by the environment they’re living in, and by the nature – beautiful and green like in the north of Iran. Often they’ll have a delicate soul, but they are diligent and strong-willed, due to the rough mountain paths they have to follow to make their way home. i wanted to introduce the audience to the vigorous but delicate nature of these people. The daily hardships of life (among the woods, rocky mountains, rivers, fog and clouds) create a dreamlike but yet credible setting.
Getting a bicycle is Gholamreza’s ultimate dream.
That is what you see in the first layer of the film. But in a more implicit layer, even more important for the boy is to beat Karim in a competition. There is a storyline about an unpaid debt that Ghomamreza’s father owes to Karim’s father. That’s why Gholamreza bets his classmate, and Karim accepts the bet for two reasons:
- he enjoys the excitement of their competition.
- at school Gholamreza seems to be invincible as the best student. But in this bicycle competition, maybe Karim can finally beat him, as Gholamreza doesn’t even have a proper bike.
There’s a lot of cycling scenes in the film. How did you record them?
We took considerable trouble for capturing these shots. I refused to use stuntmen, as that could harm the true spirit of this film. We decided to use simple shooting facilities but to use them in a creative way. Like for instance attaching the camera to a car. In the film industry today, technical tools like VFX can be used whenever you need them to create a certain atmosphere. Film facilities in Iran are not in line with the worldwide standard. Since we do not have digital robots at our disposal, we use our creativity. Even when facing obstacles, we could always get the desired shots with the help of our qualified crew.
The two boys in the film are showing a lot of persistence. Where do they find the strength not to give up?
People all over the world have different moralities, but there is one thing that all human beings have in common: everybody acts with the intention to reach a certain goal; that is the fuel that keeps our motors running. Just like all other people, Iranians dedicate most of their time to making their wishes come true. But among all other human qualities, there’s two things that are very important for every Iranian: fulfilling your promises, and helping someone whenever you’re supposed to help, even if the sacrifices would be huge. It isn’t my intention to shower my fellow-countrymen in compliments, but these two assets are very true, and they’re wonderful. Since Gholamreza and Alireza have promised to help each other, they won’t give up.
We casted our actors from the children from the village. We spent many days preparing the film together with them, and we somehow implemented the story into their real lives. In that way their mutual friendship was intensified. The two main actors had never met before, but they got so deeply involved in the story, that by the end of the shooting they felt as if they had known each other for years. Since both of them share the same village background, my plan worked out well.
Gholamreza has an interesting relationship with his parents. Sometimes he blames them (“My dad doesn’t keep his promises!”), sometimes they show nothing but love and understanding for one another (“I’m proud to have a son like you”).
Due to budgetary problems, Gholamreza’s father can’t keep the promise he makes to his son. Being just a child, the boy can’t understand how his father has other financial priorities. He has learned from his parents to always keep his word; his entire understanding of polite and correct behaviour is based upon that. To prevent his father from being humiliated in front of his family, Gholamreza can’t even tell who was the winner of the racing contest. The most important thing in this family is to respect and help one another. Gholamreza does so by winning the race, father does so by providing his family with a home, while mother is bearing the hardships, working hard to contribute to this endeavour. They all care deeply for their family-members.
In your film we see old people teaching the young ones, and young people teaching the elderly.
Through our culture and myths, Iranians have a particular understanding of heroism. Being a hero doesn’t mean having the power to obtain and collect, in fact it means having the courage to sacrifice and donate, to be generous. Our heroes are used to teaching their morals through advising, which you can tell from Iranian stories, anecdotes, and proverbs. In our culture it doesn’t make a difference whether the young generation teaches the older ones, or vice versa. The main point is: when you are able to teach others, do so.
Can you explain the title to us?
Considered the tension in Gholamreza’s home, his father forbids him to use the word ‘bicycle’ any longer. That is why Alireza and Gholamreza use the word ‘Douch’, which is short for Docharkheh (bicycle), like ‘bike’ instead of ‘bicycle’. It’s a type of abbreviation that is commonly used and that should keep them safe in case their father might overhear them.