New Documentary Shines a Light on Iranian Human Rights Activist Nasrin Sotoudeh

A new documentary by filmmakers Jeff Kaufman and Marcia S. Ross provides a firsthand look into the life of Nasrin Sotoudeh, one of Iran’s leading human rights activists and lawyers. Nasrin, which will be released in the United States on December 18, comes as Sotoudeh, who was briefly released from prison earlier this fall because of coronavirus-related health concerns, was ordered to return to prison to continue serving her 38-year prison sentence on December 2. The 57-year-old was sentenced based on charges of collusion, spreading propaganda, and insulting Iran’s supreme leader.

A recipient of the Sakharov Prize, which is given each year by the European Parliament to global human rights advocates, Sotoudeh has devoted her career to defending children, religious minorities, and women who challenge oppressive laws. The filmmakers hope that the discourse around the film will help increase international outrage about Sotoudeh’s prison sentence and “be part of this global effort demanding her release,” Ross told The FBomb.

The FBomb had the chance to talk to both Kaufman and Ross about their new film, what it was like getting to know Sotoudeh and her family, and how they hope audience members will continue to advocate for the releases of imprisoned human rights advocates everywhere.

How did you first meet Nasrin? What made you decide to focus on her for this film?

Ross: We’ve always made films about people that have really made a difference in the world, but who maybe have not been acknowledged for their work in a way. Oftentimes, that work has cost them something, but they’ve done it because they wanted to make a difference in the lives of other people, whether or not it’s unsafe or risky or whether they face financial implications. We’ve been drawn to these kinds of people.

Kaufman: We’ve known about Nasrin’s work for some time through colleagues and through our previous work, and we’ve respected her from afar. Nasrin represents something I think is really important for that country and around the world, which is someone who fights for religious minorities and fights for people who are discriminated against by the government.

Also, as we were making the film, I was really concerned about what’s going on here [in the United States] in terms of what can happen to our civil liberties in our democracy. I thought it was really important that the film really shows you how people can stand up and fight for their democracy, you know, and also how their rights can be taken away very easily.

You note at the beginning of the film that making Nasrin would not have been possible without the work of a host of camera operators and translators who had to be credited anonymously to protect their safety. Can you tell us a little about how this film was made?

Kaufman: I had done a number of films about Iran prior to this, and that has led to me forming a deeper respect for Iranian culture and also a strong interest in doing a film about human rights. So that was really a driving force for this documentary, but because of those previous films I couldn’t go to Iran myself.

Frankly, even if Marcia and I were able to travel to Iran with a five-person film crew, we would not be able to get intimate coverage of Nasrin on the streets of Tehran [like you see in the film]. We were able to work with these amazing but anonymous filmmakers who really put themselves at risk to do this. As you see, they’re not just shooting Nasrin in the privacy and security of her office; they’re walking down the street — whether they’re going into a bookstore, they’re going up into a mall and to a theater — and that was just thrilling for us and really what we’d hoped for at the beginning of this process.

Ross: We were able to use WhatsApp and Telegram to talk to and communicate with them, so we talked a lot about what we wanted the film to be, what it could be, and you know, what we hoped to achieve.

Kaufman: The other thing is that when making a film — whether it’s filming yourself or filming with colleagues from far away — you can do as much preparation ahead of time with your wish list, but then there are those moments that you can never expect.

What were some of those moments when it came to this film?

Ross: The biggest thing that happened when we were making the film was obviously Nasrin being arrested. That was horrible and shocking. We see in the film that she was in the midst of representing Narges Hosseini [an activist who was protesting laws that required Iranian women to wear hijabs in public]. That’s covered totally in the film, and you see what led to Nasrin being arrested.

But it was really like one minute we were talking to her in the park in Iran, and the next minute, which I think was two days later, she was gone. That was obviously completely shocking and upsetting. We were also trying to figure out what we could do for her personally, which is something that we’ve been really focused on since we completed the film.

This film is also, in many ways, a portrait of a marriage. We really see how Nasrin and her husband, Reza Khandan, have a full partnership and how he is with her every step of the way, both before and after her imprisonment.

Ross: We called Reza ‘Marty Ginsburg,’ he’s like Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s husband, Marty. I mean, he’s so proud of his wife. He’s obviously had his own career, and he’s a wonderful father, and they have a large supportive family who have helped them a great deal during their times in prison.

You see in the movie that from the beginning of their marriage and their relationship that she told him who she was, and Reza loved that about her. He has always supported her and continues to do so, even at great risk to himself. While we were making the film, he was also arrested and spent some time in prison.

I think his support and his belief in her and his wonderful talents as a father also give her a certain amount of freedom to fulfill what she’s probably in her own destiny.

As we see the sections in the film about Nasrin’s early life, the feminist movement and the women’s rights movement have influenced her life’s work.

Ross: Well, I think for me, it was extraordinary to see all these women taking to the streets and fighting for their rights. I also thought it was really beautiful that once she became a lawyer, she just immediately started defending other women. She became more and more drawn into fighting for rights and fights against the death penalty and for LGBT rights and a lot of other things.

But I also think that in the case of women’s rights, we see she has a daughter, and she began to think of the question of ‘What is the future of this country if we don’t like these rights?’

There’s also a memorable moment in the film where we see Nasrin in her office, and the camera operator asks her why she isn’t wearing a hijab. She essentially says she has the right to wear whatever she wants in the privacy of her office.

Kaufman: That moment, that reflects a lot about Nasrin. She has that strength and determination, but as you can also see, she’s incredibly warm. She has a huge sense of humor. I think it’s one of the things to try to do in all our films is show the real person behind events, not just a marble statue. Nasrin has a lot of depth. She’s the real thing.

For more information on Nasrin and to learn about ways you can advocate for Nasrin Sotoudeh’s release from prison, please visit the film’s official website.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.