Iranian female judokas Leila (Mandi) and her coach Maryam (Amir), travel to the Judo World Championship, intent on bringing home Iran’s first gold medal. Midway through the Judo World Championships, they receive an ultimatum from the Islamic Republic ordering Leila to fake an injury and lose, or she will be branded a traitor of the state. With her own and her family’s freedom at stake, Leila is faced with an impossible choice: comply with the Iranian regime as her coach Maryam implores her to do, or fight on, for the gold.
Tatami is the first feature film to be co-directed by an Iranian and an Israeli filmmaker.

Directed by: Guy Nattiv, Zar Amir

Written by: Guy Nattiv, Elham Erfani

Produced by: Mandy Tagger Brockey, Adi Ezroni, Jaime Ray Newman, Guy Nattiv

Cinematography: Todd Martin

Editing: Yuval Orr

Production Design: Sofia Kharebashvili, Tamar Guliashvili

Costume Design: Sopo Iosebidze

Make-Up: Madona Chanturia

Sound: Ronen Nagel

Original Score: Dascha Dauenhauer

Visual Effects: Yaron Yashinski

Casting Director: Zar Amir

Cast: Arienne Mandi, Zar Amir, Jaime Ray Newman, Ash Goldeh

Original Title: TATAMI

Film Production Country: Georgia

Statement of the Director/s
In recent decades the Iranian government has done everything in its power to prevent Iranians and Israelis from meeting each other at international events, without regard to the truth about how people actually feel. Despite this, we found a way. We joined forces two hours away from Tel Aviv and Tehran in Tbilisi, Georgia to tell the story of courageous Iranian athletes who risk their lives for freedom. Israeli and Iranian artists found their artistic brothers and sisters in one another, and found out that we are actually so close, and have so much in common, in sharing our art, aesthetics and cinema.

We believe that art is the voice of sanity cutting through the noise. The story we decided to tell in this film is the story of too many artists and athletes who were forced to give up their dreams, sometimes forced to leave their countries and loved ones because of the conflict between systems and governments. Ultimately we hope we have made a film that will show the world that humanity and partnership always win.

May this artistic and cinematographic collaboration be a tribute to these artists and athletes, and all people who strive to look beyond the frenzy of blind hatred and mutual destruction and despite all the odds, build a future together.

Biography of the Director/s
Zar Amir (known as Zar Amir-Ebrahimi) is an Iranian-French actress, producer, director and casting director. She rose to international prominence for her performance as journalist Arezoo Rahimi in the crime thriller HOLY SPIDER (2022), for which she won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress and Robert Award for Best Actress among other nominations. Zar Amir founded her production “Alambic Production” in 2019. She is also a producer and director for the BBC and oversees a cultural program for the Persian branch of BBC World. In 2022, she appeared on BBC‘s 100 Women list as one of the world‘s inspiring and influential women of the year.
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Guy Nattiv is an Academy Award-winning filmmaker originally from Israel. His first American short film, SKIN, won the 2019 Academy Award for Best Live Action Short, and played over 300 festivals around the world. Nattiv is only the second Israeli ever to win an Academy Award.

The feature version, also titled SKIN, starring Jamie Bell, Vera Farmiga and Danielle Macdonald, premiered at the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival, where it won the Fipresci Critics Prize. The film’s international premiere was at the Berlin International Film Festival, and it was distributed globally by A24 and Voltage in 2019.

Nattiv’s upcoming film, GOLDA, stars Academy Award-winning actress Helen Mirren as the first female Prime Minister of Israel, Golda Meir. Bleecker Street will release the film theatrically in August 2023.

Nattiv recently wrapped production on the historic project, TATAMI, a political sports thriller co- directed by Nattiv and Cannes Best Actress winner Zar Amir (HOLY SPIDER). The film marks the first cinematic collaboration between an Israeli and Iranian director.

In Israel, Guy wrote and directed three features, including THE FLOOD (2012) which won the Generations prize at the Berlin International Film Festival, MAGIC MEN (2014), and STRANGERS (2008) which premiered at Sundance. STRANGERS was based on a short film of the same name, which won Best Short Film at Sundance in 2006 and played over 200 festivals around the world.

Guy lives in Los Angeles with his producing partner and wife, Jaime Ray Newman, and their two young daughters. Together they run New Native Pictures which is focused on developing risk-taking, original, and socially relevant content for the screen.

Production Company:
Keshet Studios
Mandy Tagger Brockey
E-Mail: [email protected]
Phone: +13234520619
Website: www.keshetinternational.com

World Sales:
WestEnd Films
Maya Amsellem
E-Mail: [email protected]
Phone: +447973621240
Website: www.westendfilms.com