The short film In the Garden of Tulips follows young Caroline (Ava Lalezarzadeh) and her father, Sharif (Iman Nazemzadeh), as he takes her on a last drive out of Tehran through rural Iran. It was inspired by the true story of screenwriter Ava Lalezarzadeh’s mother leaving Iran during the Iran-Iraq War.
Caroline has no way of knowing whether she will ever see her family again. Many people leaving a war-torn region never reconnect with those they’ve left behind. The pair make attempts at lighthearted bonding, but the fear, panic, and desperate sadness they are feeling is clear. We learn that Caroline’s family is Jewish when she hides her Star of David necklace during a police stop.
“…Her father takes her on a last drive through rural Iran…”
Director Julia Elihu presents this story masterfully. The cinematography captures the look of Iran despite being shot at Agua Dulce in Los Angeles County. Performances by Lalezarzadeh and Nazemzadeh are pitch-perfect.
Lalezarzadeh said in an interview with UCLA Daily Bruin: “Anybody watching this film can understand what loss is like, what grief is like, what … saying goodbye is like. You don’t have to go through a revolution to understand this fear of loss and separation deeply. I think we have this idea of who immigrants are and what they look like, but this is really just a normal family.”
In the Garden of Tulips is part of a wave that has emerged from a second generation of immigrants documenting families torn apart by cultural or political conflict. The film shines new light on an old story in a growing genre filled with sadness and pain but provides a crucial platform for understanding what people have endured to ensure their family members can live in a safe, peaceful place. Elihu and Lalezarzadeh paint this picture vividly in a film you will not soon forget.
"…no way of knowing whether she will ever see her family again"
