Director: Hossein Torkjoosh
Cast: Hamoon Seyedi, Ali Yaghoobi, Mohammadreza Halalzadeh, Oudin Roshan, Fazel Ganadi
Anbar is a 2021 Iranian short drama and mystery film directed by Hossein Torkjoosh, running eighteen minutes. Set inside a scrapyard that operates in the shadows of Iranian society, it confronts questions of labor, identity, and moral accountability through a compact, tightly wound narrative.
What is Anbar about?
Inside a rundown scrapyard, a group of undocumented Afghan workers go about their daily routines under difficult conditions. When a killing occurs among them, the cramped space transforms into something more than a workplace — it becomes a crucible of suspicion and silence. The workers must contend with the aftermath while navigating their own precarious existence. Loyalties shift and the pressure of the situation forces each person to reveal something of themselves. The film builds its tension through restraint rather than spectacle, letting the confined setting and the characters' faces carry the weight of what has happened.
Cast & crew
Hossein Torkjoosh directs a cast drawn from Iranian independent film circles. Hamoon Seyedi and Ali Yaghoobi lead among the workers, joined by Mohammadreza Halalzadeh, Oudin Roshan, Fazel Ganadi, Ali Palevar, Shiva Sarmast, and Vahideh Akbari Nasab. The ensemble carries the film's spare dialogue with grounded, naturalistic performances suited to the short-form format.
Context & significance
Short film as a vehicle for social commentary has a strong tradition in Iranian cinema, and Anbar fits squarely within that lineage. The Afghan migrant worker experience in Iran — legal ambiguity, physical isolation, vulnerability to violence — has rarely been treated with the directness this film attempts. For diaspora viewers who carry memories of economic migration in the region, or who follow the longer arc of Iranian independent filmmaking, a story like this reads as both specific and universal. Torkjoosh keeps the camera close and the plot uncluttered, trusting the premise to do the work that larger productions would assign to production design or score.
Where & how to watch
Anbar is available on K-Time in its original Persian audio. No VPN is needed and there is no geo-blocking — watch on the web, a smart TV, or your phone. Cancel your subscription anytime.