Director: Saeed Zamaniyan
Cast: Elnaz Shakerdoost, Sepideh Dastineh, Taranom Ahangar, Mansour Nasiri, Sahel Namvar
Mesle Yek Raz is a 2023 Iranian short drama film directed by Saeed Zamaniyan, running approximately twenty minutes. The film centres on a child's inner world shattered by trauma, weaving together memory, fear, and fragile hope in a story that is quiet in its unfolding yet deeply felt.
What is Mesle Yek Raz about?
Nine-year-old Baran's daily life no longer follows ordinary rules. Following a traumatic event she cannot fully articulate, the boundary between what she remembers and what she imagines has become impossibly thin. In the hours she spends alone and in the moments she shares with those around her, fragments of recollection surface alongside visions she cannot explain. Her fears take on shape; her small hopes flicker in the dark. The film observes Baran's interior landscape with patience and restraint, never dramatizing her distress but simply bearing witness to a child who is rebuilding her sense of the world one uncertain day at a time.
Cast & crew
Director Saeed Zamaniyan guides the film with a careful, observational hand suited to the sensitivity of the subject matter. Lead performer Elnaz Shakerdoost anchors the emotional register of the piece, supported by Sepideh Dastineh, Taranom Ahangar, Mansour Nasiri, and Sahel Namvar, whose presences collectively form the layered world that surrounds young Baran.
Context & significance
Iranian short cinema has long been a proving ground for bold voices working with minimal resources and maximum emotional precision. Films focused on childhood trauma and the fluid boundary between imagination and reality carry particular weight in Persian storytelling tradition, where the interior lives of children have produced some of the most internationally recognized moments in Iranian film history. For diaspora viewers, Mesle Yek Raz arrives as a reminder that this tradition of intimate, child-centred storytelling continues with new filmmakers. Running just twenty minutes, it asks for a short but attentive sit — the kind of concentrated viewing that leaves a quiet impression long after the screen goes dark.
Where & how to watch
Mesle Yek Raz is available to stream on K-Time with original Persian audio. Watch on the web, your TV, or your phone — no VPN needed, no geo-blocking, cancel anytime.