The First Letter

The First Letter is set in Iran in the late 1970s, just before the Islamic revolution. In his characteristically poetic film style, Jalili tells an autobiographical story about his childhood, when he repeatedly had to fight for what he wanted and took his first steps on the way to becoming an artist. It is also a story about that first love you always remember. Jalili used these bittersweet childhood memories as a source of inspiration. Abjad, the Iranian title, is a reference to reciting the alphabet by rote. Jalili’s alter ego in this case is called Emkan. This curious, studious and also sensitive boy lives in in Saveh, a very conservative town. There, all things the teenager is interested in -calligraphy, music, photography and film -are frowned upon. At the Koran school, Emkan is sitting beside Maassoum, the girl next door. Her father runs the local cinema, for which Emkan paints posters. Emkan falls madly in love with Maassoum, but the parents of the two children are not happy about this: Maassoum is Jewish. The rebellious Emkan does not give up his love for her or his passion for art; he fights heroically for his ideals. The autobiographical story can easily be placed in a universal and contemporary perspective. Jalili is a fervent advocate of a more humane world; reason enough for the Iranian government not to allow this film by Jalili to be screened in Iranian cinemas.