Babak Hajepashi's film 'Land of Angels' has been officially selected in Iran as the country's representative in the Best International Feature Film category at the 99th Academy Awards.
This is the second film by Hajepashi to represent Iran at the Oscars ceremony. Previously, his debut feature film 'In the Embrace of a Tree' was chosen as Iran's representative for the 2025 Academy Awards.
According to an IRNA report, the film tells the story of children's suffering in Gaza and demonstrates the human consequences of war through the experience of a woman who tries to survive while protecting a group of innocent children from the horrors of the conflict.
'Land of Angels,' written and directed by Hajepashi with the participation of Manouchehr Mohammadi, was a joint project of the Tasvir-e Shahr Institute and the Sorekh Film Center. The film features Arab actors and focuses on the lives, dreams, and struggles of children against the backdrop of the war in Palestine.
Instead of depicting the conflict solely through political or military events, the film examines it from the perspective of civilians, especially children whose lives have been severely affected by violence.
The filming process took place in Tehran over a year and a half. International screenings of the film began with its participation in the festival in Kazan after a successful national showing in Iran.
'Land of Angels' won the Grand Prix for Best Feature Film at the 22nd Kazan International Film Festival 'Golden Minbar'. Before appearing in Kazan, the film was the most awarded picture at the 44th Fajr International Film Festival in Iran, where it won five 'Simorgh Crystal' awards and eight honorary diplomas.
Among the Fajr awards, Hajepashi received a special jury prize for directing, and Syrian actress Sulaf Fahavardji was recognized for her performance. The film also received awards for set design, visual effects, and other nominations.
The list of short nominees for the Oscars will be announced on December 15, after which 15 international films will be selected for voting by Academy members across all branches, who commit to watching all 15 works. Oscar nominations will be announced on January 21, 2027.
An international feature film is defined as a feature-length fictional film (over 40 minutes) shot outside the USA, with predominantly (over 50%) non-English language sound accompaniment, and may include animated and documentary films.
This year, among the submitted works are films such as 'Fjord' from Romania, which won the Palme d'Or at Cannes; 'Melting' from Chile, shown in the 'Unforeseen' section; 'Every Time' from Germany, which won the 'Unforeseen' section prize at Cannes; 'Minotaur' from France, which won the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival; as well as 'La Bola Negra' from Spain and 'Homeland' from Poland.
Furthermore, a new Academy rule allows any film that wins the top prize at one of the six major festivals—Cannes, Berlin, Venice, Sundance, Busan, and Toronto—to be included in the international feature film race even without the support of a national commission.
The 99th Academy Awards ceremony will take place on March 14, 2027.